FRANKP

[Mary Jane]

Hi Frank P,

Can you post some more info on the Crown. We will be sailing on July 11th and are seeking any info that we can get.. Glad you had a great time!

Mary Jane

[frankp01]

Mary Jane:

I agree with virtually everything in preemiemd's very thorough review:

[url="http://messages.cruisecritic.com/2/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=927093444&f=477097554&m=956105751"]Crown Review[/url]

Her description of the meals was right on. My only complaint regarding the Seven Seas restaurant (and the specialty restaurants, as well) is that they sometimes seemed understaffed. The food was generally good, some selections were better than others. The food in le Bistro was excellent. The deserts were very good, and we were particularly fond of the rum fruitcake that made several appearances at tea. The salmon croissant sandwiches at tea were also very good.

The specialty restaurants take reservations, and they do sell out. You can make reservations for any of the restaurants a day ahead at the reservations desk in the main lobby. I discovered that you can make a reservation even further ahead by speaking directly to the Maitre'D at the respective restaurant.

I thought that the wine prices were quite reasonable. We took advantage of the 6 for the price of 5 offer (buy 5 bottles... keep the receipts. The sixth bottle can be obtained at any bar or restaurant by presenting the 5 receipts. You'll be able to get a bottle at the average price of the other 5 bottles.)

You'll receive vouchers that you can use for selected restaurants ashore. They'll cost you $5 and are worth $25 at about 15 restaurants. If you don't use the vouchers you can turn them in at Reception to have your account credited. Keep in mind that I think the deadline for returning them was Friday at 6.

Our favorite outdoor spot (since we didn't want too much sun) was the nook on the port side just outside of the Lido bar. It was nicely furnished with wicker furniture.

The gym and spa were both very well furnished (I guess that's because that part of the ship was just added).

I'm in the process of scanning our Freestyle Dailies for those who want to see what the week's agenda looked like.

Phil Frank

[frankp01]

FYI, I just posted my scans of the Freestyle Dailies from the trip. The links are in my response in this [url="http://messages.cruisecritic.com/2/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=927093444&f=477097554&m=956105751&r=789100061#789100061"] thread.[/url]