Grand Princess Info Needed....

[Fletch1]

Greetings all,

 

This is directed to people who have recently cruised on the Grand Princess, or know of people who have.........

 

I am looking at booking a cruise on this ship in 2014 and just wondering what the condition of the ship is in? Would appreciate any comments, experiences, recommendations, etc. 

 

Thanks in advance. 

 

 

Fletch

 

[Zanny]

Hi Fletch.Did you mean looking to book a cruise in 2024?

[Essence08]

Disembarked on Tuesday. She is showing her age but everything worked as expected. 
new carpet throughout, flat screen tvs in room, if you wanted to find faults you’d see the rust and the bumps and bruises on the walls but honestly this didn’t detract from the cruise. Maybe I was just glad to be cruising after such a long time. 
MedallionNet was great, only time it struggled really was Christmas Day and NYE when I’m sure everyone on board was trying to use it at once. 
Pools and spas were clean and operating. 
Only ‘complaint’ was the number of ladies toilets out of action 2/3 outside Michelangelo dining room and similar in other areas. Otherwise everything in working order. 
let me know if you have any specific questions and I’ll help if I can. 

[Fletch1]

16 minutes ago, Zanny said:

Hi Fletch.Did you mean looking to book a cruise in 2024?

 

Haha....yes....2024 I meant. Thanks for the pick up.

[Fletch1]

2 minutes ago, Essence08 said:

Disembarked on Tuesday. She is showing her age but everything worked as expected. 
new carpet throughout, flat screen tvs in room, if you wanted to find faults you’d see the rust and the bumps and bruises on the walls but honestly this didn’t detract from the cruise. Maybe I was just glad to be cruising after such a long time. 
MedallionNet was great, only time it struggled really was Christmas Day and NYE when I’m sure everyone on board was trying to use it at once. 
Pools and spas were clean and operating. 
Only ‘complaint’ was the number of ladies toilets out of action 2/3 outside Michelangelo dining room and similar in other areas. Otherwise everything in working order. 
let me know if you have any specific questions and I’ll help if I can. 

 

Thanks for the reply. Was the food OK and the buffet choices still the same? We haven't cruised since 2019 and I know it will not be the same, but was just curious????

[Essence08]

Good in MDR and buffet was surprisingly good. 
Avoid Asian style noodle dishes in dining room if you like authentic foods. 
I only had one meal I didn’t enjoy and after taking a bite or two our waiter asked what we thought of it. I said wasn’t too impressed and he whisked it away, said a number of people had complained about it and got us something different. 
breakfadt and lunch in buffet was great - heaps of variety, selection of hot foods and cold dishes. Lunch on last sea day was sushi in the buffet. 
One of my kids has multiple, multiple food allergies and he was able to find foods he liked and that were safe for him in the Buffet. For diners in the MDR we would pre order the night before and he had basically free choice of anything he could wish for. Lived on smoked salmon and sushi for appetiser and mains for him were steaks, salmon, spaghetti bolognaise, and a special chef created dessert each night. 
we are doing the same cruise next year and I think we will mix up dinner between MDR and buffet - bit more variety in the buffet and still amazing quality - and heaps of food!!! 

[Fletch1]

15 minutes ago, Essence08 said:

Good in MDR and buffet was surprisingly good. 
Avoid Asian style noodle dishes in dining room if you like authentic foods. 
I only had one meal I didn’t enjoy and after taking a bite or two our waiter asked what we thought of it. I said wasn’t too impressed and he whisked it away, said a number of people had complained about it and got us something different. 
breakfadt and lunch in buffet was great - heaps of variety, selection of hot foods and cold dishes. Lunch on last sea day was sushi in the buffet. 
One of my kids has multiple, multiple food allergies and he was able to find foods he liked and that were safe for him in the Buffet. For diners in the MDR we would pre order the night before and he had basically free choice of anything he could wish for. Lived on smoked salmon and sushi for appetiser and mains for him were steaks, salmon, spaghetti bolognaise, and a special chef created dessert each night. 
we are doing the same cruise next year and I think we will mix up dinner between MDR and buffet - bit more variety in the buffet and still amazing quality - and heaps of food!!! 

 

Thanks again for replying and the info. Which cruise are you looking at next year, if you don't mind me asking?

[Aussieflyer]

I don't like buffets on cruises generally - I think they become a bun fight - so didn't go to the buffet on a very short November cruise. We had a Window suite and it was great - close to the club dining area and very easy to get around. On a longer cruise not having a concierge lounge or thermal spa like on Majestic would be a bit of a drawback. On the plus side there is a Crooners which is our preferred bar on Princess.

[Essence08]

14 minutes ago, Fletch1 said:

 

Thanks again for replying and the info. Which cruise are you looking at next year, if you don't mind me asking?

NZ round trip from Melbourne over Christmas/New Year. 

[Fletch1]

1 minute ago, Essence08 said:

NZ round trip from Melbourne over Christmas/New Year. 

 

I'm looking at NZ round trip in Feb. Taking some newbies with us. 

[arxcards]

3 hours ago, Fletch1 said:

Greetings all,

 

This is directed to people who have recently cruised on the Grand Princess, or know of people who have.........

 

I am looking at booking a cruise on this ship in 2014 and just wondering what the condition of the ship is in? Would appreciate any comments, experiences, recommendations, etc. 

 

Thanks in advance. 

 

 

Fletch

 

It was in fantastic condition in 2014.

 

Keep an eye on this live thread. 

 

[Tranquility Base]

4 hours ago, Aussieflyer said:

We had a Window suite and it was great - close to the club dining area and very easy to get around.

Were your breakfasts in Crown Grill ?

 

 

[spersephone]

We’re on it right now and enjoying the food at Horizon Court. The ship is a little older, but it’s fine and the staff are doing a great job. 

[Fletch1]

22 hours ago, arxcards said:

It was in fantastic condition in 2014.

 

Keep an eye on this live thread. 

 

Thanks.....onto it.

 

 

[Fletch1]

13 hours ago, spersephone said:

We’re on it right now and enjoying the food at Horizon Court. The ship is a little older, but it’s fine and the staff are doing a great job. 

 

Thanks....great to know. 

[Aussieflyer]

On 1/6/2023 at 2:31 AM, Tranquility Base said:

Were your breakfasts in Crown Grill ?

 

 

Yes they were. Better than on Majestic a few weeks later were the Asian restaurant. 

[Fletch1]

Thanks all for the replies....appreciate you taking the time. 

 

Now following the "live" from the Grand Princess......lots of good info there!

[sayaguru]

On 1/5/2023 at 8:01 PM, Fletch1 said:

Thanks for the reply. Was the food OK and the buffet choices still the same? We haven't cruised since 2019 and I know it will not be the same, but was just curious????

I was on her last month. Coral in November. Grand is Princesses oldest ship. It has been updated but still looks a bit tired. Rooms lacked storage compared to the newer ships. I found the buffet quite small compared to Coral. Not as much choice. MDR menus are all the same. Food was good. Service was good. 

I don't really like the layout of Grand. And for some reason they only used the Vista lounge for bingo and a guest speaker. Trivia is very crowded in the Explorers lounge. And why they have zumba on the pool deck is beyond me. Rainy windy. There are inside places. Entertainment staff I liked much better on Coral.   

[Fletch1]

6 hours ago, sayaguru said:

I was on her last month. Coral in November. Grand is Princesses oldest ship. It has been updated but still looks a bit tired. Rooms lacked storage compared to the newer ships. I found the buffet quite small compared to Coral. Not as much choice. MDR menus are all the same. Food was good. Service was good. 

I don't really like the layout of Grand. And for some reason they only used the Vista lounge for bingo and a guest speaker. Trivia is very crowded in the Explorers lounge. And why they have zumba on the pool deck is beyond me. Rainy windy. There are inside places. Entertainment staff I liked much better on Coral.   

 

Thanks for the good info. 

[spersephone]

The trivia is extremely popular, and the lounge gets packed out quickly. We have tried to get there at least fifteen minutes early to grab a seat. The great thing about the Explorers Lounge is people passing by can be enticed to come in, while the Vista Lounge is more of a specific destination you need to intend to go to.