underwhelmed by Princess (Emerald)

[cruisingourmet]

Just got back from a 15 day Hawaii cruise out of Los Angeles and found it lacking in what a 4 Star

cruise line should be.

 

The ship itself is very disjointed with bad flow from bow to stern and many dead ends.

The daily activities are movies on the deck BIG WHOOP ! or activities where they want to sell jewelry.

Considering what a unique place Hawaii is they could have had many many lectures on

what to see and learn on this island state.

 

The food was HOSPITAL QUALITY bland and poorly prepared.

Having cruised over 20 times in last 6 years, I have had many experiences, I know food, as a writer

for a food magazine, and some of the culinary disasters were unforgivable. Below is Main Dining Room or Crown Grill

• pineapple salsa was catsup, horseradish and a small chunk of pineapple
• plain white rice as a side dish
• Steak Tartare served cooked (that is a crime) Crown Grill
• vegetables either served mushy or almost raw
• a mashed potato ball that was dry and crusty inedible
•  

This was the 1st time I ever wrote a letter to a ship's Exec Chef about the awful food in MDR (No Reply either)

Our Cabin creaked LOUDLY when ship was at sea constantly and  a letter to Hotel Director led to being shown adjacent

cabins that creaked too.

 

It seems that Princess is a shadow of the "Love Boat" which they re-run 24x7 and all the cost cutting and profit maximizing

have ruined a once nice cruise brand !

 

PRINCESS IS A 3 STAR CRUISE LINE .....MAKE NO MISTAKE

 

[neverbeenhere]

Guess you could have had a better time. Good thing there are plenty of cruise lines. 

[Cruiserkenn]

OK, well, other than that, how was Hawaii?  😌

[GUT2407]

Not my favourite ship either, but still better than staying at home.

[cruisingourmet]

7 minutes ago, Cruiserkenn said:

OK, well, other than that, how was Hawaii?  😌

Hawaii is an amazing collection of islands !!

Not even a cruise line that cares so little could spoil these unique gems !

[Vic The Parrot]

I like creaky cabins. Reminds me that I'm on a moving ship at sea. 

[cruisingourmet]

8 minutes ago, GUT2407 said:

Not my favourite ship either, but still better than staying at home.

I agree, even a mediocre cruise is better than 2 weeks on land.

It is just that I was expecting a 4 star experience and got 3 star

[cruisingourmet]

2 minutes ago, Vic The Parrot said:

I like creaky cabins. Reminds me that I'm on a moving ship at sea. 

A little is okay, although I spoke to many people & made friends onboard and their cabins did not creak.

This was creak creak and occasionaly loud crack that kept waking us up !

[chefchick]

Well that’s unfortunate to hear as we will be sailing that same ship/itinerary in a little over a month.

 

Lectures don’t necessarily interest me, but a wide range of daily activities (and  evening activities) are a big priority considering all the sea days....Food is very important but it is also subjective (although what you listed doesn’t  sound very appetizing)

 

I don’t have a lot of experience with Princess, but the few cruises we have taken with them have been overall a good time...I hope this one will be no different.

 

Sorry it didn’t seem to work out for you.

[Cruiserkenn]

3 minutes ago, cruisingourmet said:

Hawaii is an amazing collection of islands !!

Not even a cruise line that cares so little could spoil these unique gems !

 

Yes, for sure, Hawaii is definitely amazing!  I am going to Hawaii again on the Emerald in March.  I will have toned down expectations of the ship, but Hawaii will be great.

 

Aloha!  😋

[Centsless_Cruiser]

My DW and I have 56 days of experience on the Emerald and other than agreeing on the lowered quality of Princess food (both MDR and buffet) the majority of the OPs post seem to be negatives about the layout of all the Grand/Grand Plus ships and the standard Princess amenities and programs.  Also as to 5 Star I don't think Princess claims that level of service if you want a luxury cruise you need to move up to a luxury cruise line!  What Princess offers is a reasonable cost for the services and ships they sail.

 

[mthomp5]

13 minutes ago, cruisingourmet said:

A little is okay, although I spoke to many people & made friends onboard and their cabins did not creak.

This was creak creak and occasionaly loud crack that kept waking us up !

 

Was your cabin in the aft section of the ship?  I was wondering because we usually book mid or mid-aft but we booked aft on our last cruise (on the Ruby) and we heard a lot more creaking than on other cruises.  We got used to it and it became white noise to us lulling is to sleep with the rocking of the ship. So perhaps a cabin mid or mid aft would have less creaking. 

 

Sorry to hear about the food misses.  

[cruisingourmet]

5 minutes ago, mthomp5 said:

 

Was your cabin in the aft section of the ship?  I was wondering because we usually book mid or mid-aft but we booked aft on our last cruise (on the Ruby) and we heard a lot more creaking than on other cruises.  We got used to it and it became white noise to us lulling is to sleep with the rocking of the ship. So perhaps a cabin mid or mid aft would have less creaking. 

 

Sorry to hear about the food misses.  

Cabin C520 that is deck 10 midship

[mthomp5]

2 minutes ago, cruisingourmet said:

Cabin C520 that is deck 10 midship

Well...bummer...there goes my theory then.  

[cruisingourmet]

13 minutes ago, Centsless_Cruiser said:

My DW and I have 56 days of experience on the Emerald and other than agreeing on the lowered quality of Princess food (both MDR and buffet) the majority of the OPs post seem to be negatives about the layout of all the Grand/Grand Plus ships and the standard Princess amenities and programs.  Also as to 5 Star I don't think Princess claims that level of service if you want a luxury cruise you need to move up to a luxury cruise line!  What Princess offers is a reasonable cost for the services and ships they sail.

I spoke to many passengers from suites and those who were Elite and they agreed that the food has slipped BIG TIME since I have only taken 2 Princess cruises I am just using my 30 years of culinary experience and Ironically the Exec Chef John Convery & I are members of the same international gourmet organization, making it worse !

 

 

Edited December 27, 2018 by cruisingourmet
typo

[tawlaw1526]

12 minutes ago, Cruiserkenn said:

 

Yes, for sure, Hawaii is definitely amazing!  I am going to Hawaii again on the Emerald in March.  I will have toned down expectations of the ship, but Hawaii will be great.

 

Aloha!  😋

Oh goodness, please don’t tone down your expectations based on one persons opinion.    I find the Emerald to be a wonderful ship.  The food never disappoints us and the entertainment was plenty and very good.   I have been on 16 Princess Cruises in 4 1/2 years and all of them in my opinion have been excellent cruises.  Princess has never disappointed me.    Enjoy your cruise. 

[Colo Cruiser]

I am thinking there is more to this story.   

[Brisbane41]

Well I agree with a poorly designed ship with a lot of dead ends. That is totally understandable. I have been on quite a few of the Grand class (Emerald Princess included) and despite the fact they share the same design, the Emerald Princess really does have dead ends and bottlenecks that disrupt the passenger flow.

 

Apart from other complaints you have, maybe it was a bad cruise or just a bad time of year. I have done 35 cruises and the cruise lines and ships do tend to have their ups and down moments just like the waves on the ocean. Sometimes you have to take the good with the bad and give feedback where it is due to make them improve.

[MTJSR]

4 hours ago, cruisingourmet said:

Just got back from a 15 day Hawaii cruise out of Los Angeles and found it lacking in what a 4 Star

cruise line should be.

The food was HOSPITAL QUALITY bland and poorly prepared.

Having cruised over 20 times in last 6 years, I have had many experiences, I know food, as a writer

for a food magazine, and some of the culinary disasters were unforgivable. Below is Main Dining Room or Crown Grill

• pineapple salsa was catsup, horseradish and a small chunk of pineapple
• plain white rice as a side dish
• Steak Tartare served cooked (that is a crime) Crown Grill
• vegetables either served mushy or almost raw
• a mashed potato ball that was dry and crusty inedible
•  

This was the 1st time I ever wrote a letter to a ship's Exec Chef about the awful food in MDR (No Reply either)

Our Cabin creaked LOUDLY when ship was at sea constantly and  a letter to Hotel Director led to being shown adjacent

cabins that creaked too.

 

It seems that Princess is a shadow of the "Love Boat" which they re-run 24x7 and all the cost cutting and profit maximizing

have ruined a once nice cruise brand !

 

PRINCESS IS A 3 STAR CRUISE LINE .....MAKE NO MISTAKE

 

 

I am on the Emerald right now. This is my 15th Princess cruise and the worst food I have ever had on a Princess cruise. Before all the "Food Defenders" chime in, the menus have changed and so far not one meal has met my simple standard of just having "taste".

 

I cannot believe ANYONE is excited or will lust for more of this very mediocre, completely forgettable, flavorless MDR food. The Horizon buffet is a freakin zoo! Never an empty table and the food is even less exciting. Seriously, the OP is right. Princess has attained a new low in food taste and quality. So disappointed!

[GUT2407]

4 hours ago, cruisingourmet said:

I agree, even a mediocre cruise is better than 2 weeks on land.

It is just that I was expecting a 4 star experience and got 3 star

 Not sure why you’d expect 4*, and no idea why you’d think food on any time the mass market lines would have gourme food, if that’s what you want you may like to look towards Ociana, Silverseas or The like.

 

lines like Princess, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Carnival etc you are going to get wedding or conference food.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Did you try to work out where the creaking was coming from? We've had that sort of noise on a couple of cruises and both times it turned out to be an issue with the balcony door. We told our cabin steward, and guest services on one cruise I think, and a crew member came and fixed the problem.

 

We also had annoying rattle on another cruise which was also balcony door related but in that case stuffing some folded paper between the door and the jamb stopped the rattle.

[crawford]

7 hours ago, cruisingourmet said:

Just got back from a 15 day Hawaii cruise out of Los Angeles and found it lacking in what a 4 Star

cruise line should be.

 

The ship itself is very disjointed with bad flow from bow to stern and many dead ends.

The daily activities are movies on the deck BIG WHOOP ! or activities where they want to sell jewelry.

Considering what a unique place Hawaii is they could have had many many lectures on

what to see and learn on this island state.

 

The food was HOSPITAL QUALITY bland and poorly prepared.

Having cruised over 20 times in last 6 years, I have had many experiences, I know food, as a writer

for a food magazine, and some of the culinary disasters were unforgivable. Below is Main Dining Room or Crown Grill

• pineapple salsa was catsup, horseradish and a small chunk of pineapple
• plain white rice as a side dish
• Steak Tartare served cooked (that is a crime) Crown Grill
• vegetables either served mushy or almost raw
• a mashed potato ball that was dry and crusty inedible
•  

This was the 1st time I ever wrote a letter to a ship's Exec Chef about the awful food in MDR (No Reply either)

Our Cabin creaked LOUDLY when ship was at sea constantly and  a letter to Hotel Director led to being shown adjacent

cabins that creaked too.

 

It seems that Princess is a shadow of the "Love Boat" which they re-run 24x7 and all the cost cutting and profit maximizing

have ruined a once nice cruise brand !

 

PRINCESS IS A 3 STAR CRUISE LINE .....MAKE NO MISTAKE

 

With 20 cruises under your belt in the last 6 years and a writer for a food magazine, I would love your opinion of the food on comparable 3*-4* lines. Been exclusively on Princess for over 10 years; maybe a change is in order? 

[Centsless_Cruiser]

7 hours ago, Brisbane41 said:

Well I agree with a poorly designed ship with a lot of dead ends. That is totally understandable. I have been on quite a few of the Grand class (Emerald Princess included) and despite the fact they share the same design, the Emerald Princess really does have dead ends and bottlenecks that disrupt the passenger flow.

 

Apart from other complaints you have, maybe it was a bad cruise or just a bad time of year. I have done 35 cruises and the cruise lines and ships do tend to have their ups and down moments just like the waves on the ocean. Sometimes you have to take the good with the bad and give feedback where it is due to make them improve.

I am curious as to where you find the layout of the Emerald to be significantly different from other Grand/Grand+ ships?  My DW and I have been on all the Grand+ ships (Emerald, Crown and Ruby) plus the Sapphire, Star and Golden and other than minor differences find them all to be very "familiar" which to us is a plus.  Our most favorite is the Sapphire but the Emerald is our second choice.

 

Thanks for posting.

[LawDog61]

We were on the same cruise and had a great cruise.  

 

I agree with the OP that the daytime entertainment activities are lacking if you don’t enjoy bingo, games, art auctions, jewelry “ enrichment” lectures etc.(Which I dont). Princess needs to step up their enrichment program and not treat it as a sales opportunity. Tiki Dave gives a good lecture series on the islands, but it is the same every year (even the same jokes).  For the daytime, I “make my own fun” as mother would say on a rainy day, by downloading video to my iPad and lots of reading material. Evenings I spend listening to live music which was very good this cruise.

 

I am no expert on food- just an eater, but we thought the food was good-typical princess fare.

 

We were in the D400s canins and did not experience any unusual cabin noise.

 

Over all, a good cruise.   BTW I heard there were 2700 passengers onboard, meaning a  significant number of vacant cabins for those of us interested in cruise industry economics.

 

[OCruisers]

11 hours ago, cruisingourmet said:

Cabin C520 that is deck 10 midship

 

11 hours ago, mthomp5 said:

Well...bummer...there goes my theory then.  

 

On Emerald Princess C520 is an inside cabin which is mid-aft ... closer to mid than aft.  

The last time we were on Emerald our cabin was D416 (deck 9 ... true midship ... balcony) and had no problems.  

Edited December 27, 2018 by OCruisers