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Back to reality (sigh)... Just of the Caribbean Princess!

Dreamer333

By Dreamer333,
in Princess Cruises

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Dreamer333

Dreamer333

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Hi, everyone!

I just got off the Caribbean Princess yesterday (Western Caribbean sailing)... And I am trying to re-adjust to reality!!!

 

It was a WONDERFUL cruise!! I have no complaints (expect that I was missing $150 in shipboard credit, which never got found... but that issue didn't even put a frown on my face... I think I was smiling non-stop the whole week!)

 

There was a big group of about 30 of us... mostly family... My sister and her fiance got married on a beach in Ocho Rios Jamaica, and it was spectacular!! It was very hot and humid, but everything turned out wonderfully!

 

I ate in the buffets for lunch (and of course, those 2am feedings)... and ate in the dining rooms in the evenings.

The food was always delicious. Not a single complaint!

As far as the jeans policy... I personally never wore jeans, but there really is nothing stated on the ship about not allowing jeans in the dining rooms. In the Princess Patter and on signs outside the dining rooms, it states Shorts and T-Shirts are not permitted in the Dining Rooms.

I have no idea if others were wearing jeans or not, because I did not crawl under tables to check. :D Either way, I wouldn't have cared.

 

The movies that they played on MUTS during the day were:

Ice Age, Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Grease, Shrek, Big, Spiderman, Harry Potter, Princess Bride, Splash, E.T., Jurassic Park, Monsters Inc, Back To The Future, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Hitch, and Fever Pitch.

 

In the evenings on MUTS was: National Treasure, Rocky Horror Picture Show, The Interpreter, Sahara, Monday Night Football (Kansas City Chiefs vs Denver Broncos), Miss Congeniality 2, Beyonce in conert, Tina Turner in concert, Tom Jones concert, and Diana Krall Live in Paris.

 

Some of my sister-in-laws and I laid out in the sun at the MUTS pool one day. The sound of the movie was a bit loud, but it did not infringe on our conversations at all. We were easily able to talk without raising our voices.

There have been many complaints about MUTS on this board, but I do not see why it would be a problem for anyone on the CB. The sound does NOT carry far. When we walked over to the next pool (to watch the belly-flop contest... ouch!), I couldn't hear the noise from MUTS at all. There is a calypso band playing in that other pool, and MUTS and the band do not interfere with one another AT ALL.

And trust me, there are MANY other places to lay out and find a quiet spot to relax.

 

I attended the first wine tasting, which was fun! Although I completely forgot to use my $5 coupon! (There is a $9 charge to attend the wine tasting, but your entrance ticket is good for $5 off a bottle of wine).

 

As someone else already posted, our sailing did stop to pick up about 7 Cubans on a raft. However, the Cubans informed the Princess officers that they did not need help, so Princess contacted the US Coast Guard, and we waited until they arrived. I had binoculars, and two of the Cubans appeared to be children (or just shorter than the rest of the guys).

I felt so sorry for them! They were very brave to risk their lives to enter the US. I wish they would've made it!

When the coast guard was coming, one of the Cubans stood up (some thought he was going to jump), but instead he MOONED THE SHIP, which I thought was absolutely hilarious!

Anyways, my prayers are with them and their families. I hope that someday (soon), they can somehow make it to the United States, and have the freedom which they are willing to risk their lives for.

I ended up in a conversation with a close minded man, to whom I simply had to remind him that most likely HIS relatives came to the US on a boat too!

 

Anyways... another "exciting" delay was in Cozumel. They announced that they were waiting for 2 passangers. The passengers ended up being my sister and my sister-in-law (who is also a member of the cruise critic board!! :) )... No, they were not drunk in Carlos & Charlies... they actaully missed the ferry!!! We were very grateful that the ship waited for them! (My SIL had 4 kids on board!)

When they came running up to the ship, they were hoping that they could quietly get on board, but they didn't realize that the announcements had been made about waiting for 2 passengers, so they were met with applause and cheering! (I'm glad the other passengers were in good spirits about it! Nobody seemed upset about the 40 minute delay).

 

I've noticed a few changes since my last cruise aboard the CB (Oct 2004)... The Princess Patters have a slightly different look to them.

Also, there is no longer a "drink of the day"... Instead the have a "Signature Collection" drink, which is basically a highlight of one of the drinks (no discounted price tho)... and there no longer is a "shooter of the day".

The other change I noticed was that they were being a bit more strict about bringing liquor aboard, from the ports.

 

We hit Skywalkers several nights, and had a great time dancing away (I'm a little nervous about developing some of those photos!! :eek: )

 

We spent time in the casino (I actually won $200 in black jack!). The dealers were great!

 

I am sure that I will think of more things to add to this review, but in the meantime, FEEL FREE TO ASK QUESTIONS!

 

Overall, the cruise was absolutely spectactular!! (And I wish I was still there!!!)

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Dreamer333

Dreamer333

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A few more things that I forgot to mention:

 

 

We saw Bert Stratton one night. He was good, but I didn't become a die-hard Bert fan! I'd probably see him again if he's on one of my future sailings.

 

We did a snorkling w/ Stingrays excursion in Grand Cayman. I am trying to remember the name of the tour company we used (Captain Brians??). I'll post the correct name, becuase it was great, and cheaper than going thru Princess.

We took a boat out about 20 minutes into sea and stopped at a sand bar... the stingrays were everywhere! At first, some of us were really freaked out (the stingrays were HUGE and they were bumbing into us!!) But we ened up getting used to it, and had fun!

Then the boat took us to two different areas for more snorkling.

 

We did the banana boat ride in Princess Cays! It didn't go as fast as I would've liked it to, but it was still great! In the end, they dumped us all in the middle of the ocean, which was hilarious!

 

Some of my sisters did the Princess excursion of swimming with Dolphins, which they seemed to really enjoy.

 

(Speaking of dolphins, I did see them once in the ocean, near the ship!)

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traci28

traci28

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Hello everyone ~!!!!! Sitting at my desk here at home is a bit sad as I had a wonderful time out at sea w/ Captain Romano and his crew. Before I start my review - I have to give a HUGE thank you to the Captain for waiting for us in Cozumel. Being a young woman, with another young woman....I was hysterical thinking that I had missed the ship and would have to find my way back to the states. The crew in Cozumel worked extremely hard to get us back to the ship as soon as they could. My sister in law and I had decided to see Tulum on our own and ended up missing the ferry back to Cozumel by 15 minutes. We had to wait until 6:00 to catch the next one, which would get us to the CB by 6:45. UGH ~! They called the captain and told them our situation and that I had four children on board without another parent (I had many other family members on board taking care of them), that I did NOT have my birthcertificate/passport with me, no credit card and very little cash....not to mention I was hysterical ~!!!!! The captain very graciously chose to wait for us...... They had a taxi waiting at the ferry peir for us and another gentlemen peddling one of the bike taxis and the CB peir waiting to take us to the ship. We were hoping to just sneak in very quietly, but because Captain Romano was very great at keeping everyone updated on our situations, the entire ship knew they were waiting for two passengers. As Dreamer333 mentioned earlier, the entire portside of the ship was out on their balconies screaming and cheering us in ~!!!! It was actually a very warm welcome and made my trip both in Cozumel and the CB extremely memorable.

 

 

The ship was beautiful and very large. I had heard it was booked to full capacity but was not overwhelmed by the amount of people onboard. You could always find a place to sit and eat dinner, lay in the sun, or just have a quiet conversation somewhere. Even on sea days. The only slight downfall was that the elevators were constantly being used and sometimes the wait was a little long. We chose to use the stairs most often - which was fine because of the amount of food that was being consumed ~!!! :)

 

And speaking of food - WOW ~! The choices were amazing !!!!! You could eat anything at anytime ~!!!! Coming back from the club (SKYWALKERS was awesome ~!) it was great to grab something to eat - to soak up a little alcohol. The buffet at that time isn't great, but you can have a seat in the Caribe Cafe and have a waiter serve you off an abbreviated menu. Omelets, pasta, steak, etc.

 

The shows were entertaining as well. I had heard that Caliente was amazing but did not have a chance to catch that. The cruise show was great ~! It was amazing seeing the crew with so much talent. When we had first gotten there, I thought it was a bit cheezy - as I wasn't sure what to expect, but the ending was absolutely hilarious. I was litterly crying from laughing so much ~! Another show I recommend is the James "the kid" Michael comedy/magic show. It is rated PG-13 for some of the jokes, but James moves so fast, I don't even think the kids catch most of it. His live animal trick is great - but I'm not telling what kind of animal is involved...but you will be in awe. James is also a very friendly person off the stage as well, as I ran into him in many places on the ship. :) I truly enjoyed the fact that the entertainment joined the passengers during the day. It gave us a chance to get to know everyone very personally.

 

I have to say that this being my first cruise, I am definately hooked. I wasn't sure what to expect boarding the ship but found the experience to be one I'll never forget.

 

Thank you to all that made this memorable and I can't wait for the next. Post cruise blooze are really setting in ~!

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Dreamer333

Dreamer333

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Hi, traci28!!

 

I too am glad that Captain Romano waited for you! Skywalkers just wouldn't have been the same without you there!! Hee hee!

 

And I can't wait to see the video of you being hypnotized on stage!! :D

 

So... are you ready for our next cruise??

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Dreamer333

Dreamer333

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Someone on another thread had a question about my post regarding the Drink of the Day being eliminated... Here is some further clarification about it:

 

In the past, on the back page of the Princess Patter, they had a section in which they would list a Drink of the Day, and a Shooter of the Day.

The drink was different each day, such as a Banana Daqueri, and the price was slightly lower for that particular drink, for that particular day.

 

On this new format, they list several specials going on thoughout the ship.

 

First they list their Signature Collection Drink (which they called a Premium Cocktail), which as far as I can tell, is NOT a discounted price. For example, they listed the Rasberry Fizz for $6.50 (On another day, they listed the Mojito for $6.50).

 

Under the Signature Collection drink, they than list a different "specials" going on that day... Most days it was a "1/2 Yard Special" in which you can buy a 1/2 yard of any blended drink for $6.

 

Under the 1/2 yard special, they list a sale of DosXX beer... buy four, get one free.

 

Then they listed if there was a special at a certain bar for a certain time (for example, you could get a Bloody Mary in 4 different bars for $3.25 between the hours of 9am-noon).

 

So they definitely have specials still... but they don't list a drink (or shooter) of the day for a discounted price.

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Dreamer333

Dreamer333

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Dreamer333..what did you mean by this statement re liquor? I've always been able to bring back a bottle in my beach bag..are they checking more thoroughly now?

 

In the past, I was able to carry it right on without anyone asking questions. However on this cruise, they had two employees stationed in front of the elevators, asking everyone if they had liquor. For those carrying it in the liquor boxes, they were stopped... so I suppose if you have it in your beach bag, there is no way for them to know (unless they say something when they see it in the x-ray).

 

In Grand Cayman, I bought liquor to take home with me (the price for a large bottle of Kettle One was only $14!!) and the local stores, in the area of the port, didn't let you take it with you... they delivered it to the ship. (The same was true in Cozumel).

 

This was my first time on the Western Caribbean itinerary, so maybe they are always more strict in this way.

 

Speaking of liquor... When first boarding the ship, I was able to bring two 6-packs of Corona, with no problems at all! (I simply carried it on in the original grocery bag).

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jerseygirl3

jerseygirl3

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Glad your trip on the Caribbean Princess was so wonderful. We were on the 9/17/05 sailing. Captain Romano is the best! We've had him before on the Grand Princess.

 

While I wasn't as "wowed" by this ship/sailing as our previous two Princess cruises, we still went ahead and did one open booking while we were onboard, as well as booked the CP again for next September.

 

Did you like your Aloha deck balcony cabin. We had a Caribe deck balcony cabin, and while the larger balcony was nice, it still got very sunny regardless of the balcony being half covered.

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ambullmom

ambullmom

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Dreamer, Thanks so much for your review. I do have a question.

 

Is there a band that playes at the pool since muts is showing a movie??? I can't imagine a caribbean cruise without caribbean music and the steel drums playing.

 

Thanks so much,

Mary BEth

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Dreamer333

Dreamer333

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Is there a band that playes at the pool since muts is showing a movie??? I can't imagine a caribbean cruise without caribbean music and the steel drums playing.

 

Hi, Mary Beth!

There are two big pools on the Lido deck of the CB... one of them has Muts, and the other has a caribbean band playing!

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