Review of Caribbean Princess April 15 - 22, 2023

[sns1]

Background - This was my husband and my 30th cruise.

 

Arrival - Princess had e-mailed us that our arrival time was now at 12:30 p.m. because of the cleaning from noro.  We arrived at the time and checked in.  Our room wasn't ready until 2:30 p.m.  We went to have lunch but needed to bring our luggage with us.  We do carry on luggage.

 

Room - We were in vista suite - C750.  We originally booked a mini suite on the dolphin deck but put in the lowest bid for a vista suite and were notified a couple of weeks before the cruise that it was accepted.  We felt it was worth it.

 

We met our room steward right away and he told us that he was responsible for ALL the suites in the aft area.  This was not just the Caribe deck but all aft suites.  He did have a helper but we rarely saw them.  We would leave a note and things were taken care of but we could tell that he had a lot on his plate.   The room was tidied up twice a day.

 

We miss having a little pad of paper and pen.  Why was that done away with?????

 

International Cafe - we like this area but not sure why the coffee area is not larger.  There needs to be a line for just plain coffee.  I felt bad for people who stood in line for food and then had to stand in line for coffee.  This area can get quite busy at times. 

 

Premium Desserts - Princess needs to do away with this.  We tried it but would never order again.  It took forever to get the sundae and it was NOTHING special.  The ice cream is just plain vanilla ice cream......not premium ice cream.  The chocolate tasted like chocolate sauce....not hot fudge.  We threw away the lollipop.  I don't understand the small bottles of liquor.  We asked for Kahlua in the sundae and they poured it into a container for us.  The girl asked for our room number because there was a charge and we said that we already paid but the girl insisted on getting our cabin number.  We refused and then they just threw out the Kahlua.  People that had placed their orders were hanging around the counter.  It was very crowded.  We never went back.  Not worth the calories, hassle or cost.

 

We went to Sabitini's for dinner one night.  We had an outstanding meal.  I've always wanted to try Ossobuco.  It was to die for.  So tender and flavorful.  We normally go to Crown Grill but decided to skip it this cruise. 

 

We had club class for dining.  The staff is outstanding.  We had cruised in February and there were quite a few that were still there.  That was nice.  We could always find something that we liked on the menu.  We would go to the buffet or order food to be delivered for lunch.  Breakfast was at Sabitini's. 

 

There were people that were sick with noro on the cruise.  We did not get sick.  We wash our hands, use the liquid and try to stay away from crowds.  We did go to the Princess Theater one evening to see the comedian.  I love to lay in the sun and usually find a lounger on the sun deck, right outside of the Sanctuary.  There was only one day that it was semi busy up there. My husband likes to read up in Skywalkers or on our deck.  I do think the crew tried their best to keep people from getting sick.  I did witness many passengers not washing their hands, they touched the food and did not listen to what the crew asked them to do.  I also saw a child go to the hand washing station and her mother told her that she was ok and didn't need to wash.  The little girl said "but mom, I need to wash my hands".  The mother actually pulled the girl from the sink.   Maybe they weren't going to the buffet.......

 

We had quite a bit of OBC, so we used it in the casino.  We would have gambled more but the smell of smoke was bad.  Princess use to have 2 non smoking nights during a seven day cruise but every night was smoking night.  We were going to go to bingo during the week but they only had it on the last day.  By then we had used up our OBC.

 

Getting off the ship was a breeze.  We were one of the first off and we take our own luggage.  Getting to the parking garage was a little challenge but we were good once we found the elevators. 

 

Our only complaints were the coffee line at the International Cafe and the Premium Desserts.

[PacnGoNow]

10 minutes ago, sns1 said:

Background - This was my husband and my 30th cruise.

 

Arrival - Princess had e-mailed us that our arrival time was now at 12:30 p.m. because of the cleaning from noro.  We arrived at the time and checked in.  Our room wasn't ready until 2:30 p.m.  We went to have lunch but needed to bring our luggage with us.  We do carry on luggage.

 

Room - We were in vista suite - C750.  We originally booked a mini suite on the dolphin deck but put in the lowest bid for a vista suite and were notified a couple of weeks before the cruise that it was accepted.  We felt it was worth it.

 

We met our room steward right away and he told us that he was responsible for ALL the suites in the aft area.  This was not just the Caribe deck but all aft suites.  He did have a helper but we rarely saw them.  We would leave a note and things were taken care of but we could tell that he had a lot on his plate.   The room was tidied up twice a day.

 

We miss having a little pad of paper and pen.  Why was that done away with?????

 

International Cafe - we like this area but not sure why the coffee area is not larger.  There needs to be a line for just plain coffee.  I felt bad for people who stood in line for food and then had to stand in line for coffee.  This area can get quite busy at times. 

 

Premium Desserts - Princess needs to do away with this.  We tried it but would never order again.  It took forever to get the sundae and it was NOTHING special.  The ice cream is just plain vanilla ice cream......not premium ice cream.  The chocolate tasted like chocolate sauce....not hot fudge.  We threw away the lollipop.  I don't understand the small bottles of liquor.  We asked for Kahlua in the sundae and they poured it into a container for us.  The girl asked for our room number because there was a charge and we said that we already paid but the girl insisted on getting our cabin number.  We refused and then they just threw out the Kahlua.  People that had placed their orders were hanging around the counter.  It was very crowded.  We never went back.  Not worth the calories, hassle or cost.

 

We went to Sabitini's for dinner one night.  We had an outstanding meal.  I've always wanted to try Ossobuco.  It was to die for.  So tender and flavorful.  We normally go to Crown Grill but decided to skip it this cruise. 

 

We had club class for dining.  The staff is outstanding.  We had cruised in February and there were quite a few that were still there.  That was nice.  We could always find something that we liked on the menu.  We would go to the buffet or order food to be delivered for lunch.  Breakfast was at Sabitini's. 

 

There were people that were sick with noro on the cruise.  We did not get sick.  We wash our hands, use the liquid and try to stay away from crowds.  We did go to the Princess Theater one evening to see the comedian.  I love to lay in the sun and usually find a lounger on the sun deck, right outside of the Sanctuary.  There was only one day that it was semi busy up there. My husband likes to read up in Skywalkers or on our deck.  I do think the crew tried their best to keep people from getting sick.  I did witness many passengers not washing their hands, they touched the food and did not listen to what the crew asked them to do.  I also saw a child go to the hand washing station and her mother told her that she was ok and didn't need to wash.  The little girl said "but mom, I need to wash my hands".  The mother actually pulled the girl from the sink.   Maybe they weren't going to the buffet.......

 

We had quite a bit of OBC, so we used it in the casino.  We would have gambled more but the smell of smoke was bad.  Princess use to have 2 non smoking nights during a seven day cruise but every night was smoking night.  We were going to go to bingo during the week but they only had it on the last day.  By then we had used up our OBC.

 

Getting off the ship was a breeze.  We were one of the first off and we take our own luggage.  Getting to the parking garage was a little challenge but we were good once we found the elevators. 

 

Our only complaints were the coffee line at the International Cafe and the Premium Desserts.

Instead of waiting in a long line for coffee, you could just have a seat and order from one of the bar hosts, who are walking around.  Unless, you were just wanting a to go coffee, maybe?  Or, the IC was too crowded to find a seat?

 

Thank you for your review. 

 

 

[SargassoPirate]

Ignorant people who don't wash their hands before touching food probably then wonder how they got Niro.   

 

Key word here is ignorant.

 

Doesn't really bother me what they do because I wash my hands and break the chain of contamination between the world and what goes into my mouth.

 

 

[sns1]

There were no seats and I just wanted a to go cup of coffee.  I would go there after walking in the morning and take the cup to my room. There was an employee there that would pour the coffee into the cup and I would be on my way.  (I did stand in line.....no cutting in line)   There was another employee that would write on the cup that I wanted it black and my name.  He would put me in the line of specialty coffees being made.  I asked if he could just pour the coffee and he said no, I had to wait. 

[jinpasco]

I have to agree with having a separate line for those of us wanting only fresh brewed coffee. I have stood in line for over 15 min waiting for them to pour one to go cup. The coffee and in the buffet was the syrup kind...disgusting. This was the only place to get drinkable plain coffee. Maybe put that carafe closer to the bar area next to the IC ??

[voljeep]

like when I go to a bar, and just want a beer - and the bartender is making all the fancy drinks 

like a majito - oh wait, nevermind, that was for my wife ... I'll just wait

[BamaVol]

39 minutes ago, PacnGoNow said:

Instead of waiting in a long line for coffee, you could just have a seat and order from one of the bar hosts, who are walking around.  Unless, you were just wanting a to go coffee, maybe?  Or, the IC was too crowded to find a seat?

 

Thank you for your review. 

 

 

We were 10 nights on the CB in March and had the same issue.  There were just 2 servers covering the area and empty seats were at a premium.  It was usually easier for the two of us to split up; one getting the food and the other getting the drinks.  Then it was just a matter of finding seats afterwards.  Often that meant sitting across the deck in Vines, which was fine.  There was always confusion because pax couldn’t comprehend that there were 2 lines, one for food and another for coffee.  It wouldn’t take much to come up with a better arrangement.

[BamaVol]

9 minutes ago, jinpasco said:

I have to agree with having a separate line for those of us wanting only fresh brewed coffee. I have stood in line for over 15 min waiting for them to pour one to go cup. The coffee and in the buffet was the syrup kind...disgusting. This was the only place to get drinkable plain coffee. Maybe put that carafe closer to the bar area next to the IC ??

 
I’m pretty sure there was another spot, Coffee and Cones up on the Lido deck, where genuine coffee was brewed. A bit of a haul in the morning since we don’t use the elevators.

[u2harmony]

1 hour ago, sns1 said:

Background - This was my husband and my 30th cruise.

 

Arrival - Princess had e-mailed us that our arrival time was now at 12:30 p.m. because of the cleaning from noro.  We arrived at the time and checked in.  Our room wasn't ready until 2:30 p.m.  We went to have lunch but needed to bring our luggage with us.  We do carry on luggage.

 

Room - We were in vista suite - C750.  We originally booked a mini suite on the dolphin deck but put in the lowest bid for a vista suite and were notified a couple of weeks before the cruise that it was accepted.  We felt it was worth it.

 

We met our room steward right away and he told us that he was responsible for ALL the suites in the aft area.  This was not just the Caribe deck but all aft suites.  He did have a helper but we rarely saw them.  We would leave a note and things were taken care of but we could tell that he had a lot on his plate.   The room was tidied up twice a day.

 

We miss having a little pad of paper and pen.  Why was that done away with?????

 

International Cafe - we like this area but not sure why the coffee area is not larger.  There needs to be a line for just plain coffee.  I felt bad for people who stood in line for food and then had to stand in line for coffee.  This area can get quite busy at times. 

 

Premium Desserts - Princess needs to do away with this.  We tried it but would never order again.  It took forever to get the sundae and it was NOTHING special.  The ice cream is just plain vanilla ice cream......not premium ice cream.  The chocolate tasted like chocolate sauce....not hot fudge.  We threw away the lollipop.  I don't understand the small bottles of liquor.  We asked for Kahlua in the sundae and they poured it into a container for us.  The girl asked for our room number because there was a charge and we said that we already paid but the girl insisted on getting our cabin number.  We refused and then they just threw out the Kahlua.  People that had placed their orders were hanging around the counter.  It was very crowded.  We never went back.  Not worth the calories, hassle or cost.

 

We went to Sabitini's for dinner one night.  We had an outstanding meal.  I've always wanted to try Ossobuco.  It was to die for.  So tender and flavorful.  We normally go to Crown Grill but decided to skip it this cruise. 

 

We had club class for dining.  The staff is outstanding.  We had cruised in February and there were quite a few that were still there.  That was nice.  We could always find something that we liked on the menu.  We would go to the buffet or order food to be delivered for lunch.  Breakfast was at Sabitini's. 

 

There were people that were sick with noro on the cruise.  We did not get sick.  We wash our hands, use the liquid and try to stay away from crowds.  We did go to the Princess Theater one evening to see the comedian.  I love to lay in the sun and usually find a lounger on the sun deck, right outside of the Sanctuary.  There was only one day that it was semi busy up there. My husband likes to read up in Skywalkers or on our deck.  I do think the crew tried their best to keep people from getting sick.  I did witness many passengers not washing their hands, they touched the food and did not listen to what the crew asked them to do.  I also saw a child go to the hand washing station and her mother told her that she was ok and didn't need to wash.  The little girl said "but mom, I need to wash my hands".  The mother actually pulled the girl from the sink.   Maybe they weren't going to the buffet.......

 

We had quite a bit of OBC, so we used it in the casino.  We would have gambled more but the smell of smoke was bad.  Princess use to have 2 non smoking nights during a seven day cruise but every night was smoking night.  We were going to go to bingo during the week but they only had it on the last day.  By then we had used up our OBC.

 

Getting off the ship was a breeze.  We were one of the first off and we take our own luggage.  Getting to the parking garage was a little challenge but we were good once we found the elevators. 

 

Our only complaints were the coffee line at the International Cafe and the Premium Desserts.

Hello, I am on this cruise next week - interested in how early you got off the ship because I have an early flight home. We are also in an aft suite and we are hoping to be off the ship in the very first group. 

[sns1]

We were off by 7.  Left the parking garage by 7:30 am

[sns1]

You will be allowed to get off first because you are in a suite.

[nini]

On 4/26/2023 at 6:05 AM, u2harmony said:

Hello, I am on this cruise next week - interested in how early you got off the ship because I have an early flight home. We are also in an aft suite and we are hoping to be off the ship in the very first group. 

Regardless of your cabin type, you will sign up for disembarkation times. Last September, we signed up to be in the first group to walk off with our own bags which was 7:30 am

[Torfamm]

On 4/26/2023 at 8:53 AM, jinpasco said:

I have to agree with having a separate line for those of us wanting only fresh brewed coffee. I have stood in line for over 15 min waiting for them to pour one to go cup. The coffee and in the buffet was the syrup kind...disgusting. This was the only place to get drinkable plain coffee. Maybe put that carafe closer to the bar area next to the IC ??

Do they not have it at Coffee & Cones? The line was always much shorter there in the morning than the International Cafe. As long as it was after 6, I went there for lattes every morning 

[jinpasco]

1 hour ago, Torfamm said:

Do they not have it at Coffee & Cones? The line was always much shorter there in the morning than the International Cafe. As long as it was after 6, I went there for lattes every morning 

I believe they did . I never gave it a thought as I had my routine of coffee then our favorite flavored chia ,/ yogurts at breakfast at the IC. I suppose they may have had those at the buffet. May be a better idea to go up next time and see. 

[Cruise till you drop]

1 hour ago, jinpasco said:

I believe they did . I never gave it a thought as I had my routine of coffee then our favorite flavored chia ,/ yogurts at breakfast at the IC. I suppose they may have had those at the buffet. May be a better idea to go up next time and see. 

Not sure why you’re getting lambasted for your coffee service choice.  You reviewed what you did and saw and that should be enough.  I agree it should be quicker for simple orders and maybe larger

 

Thanks for your review

[jwattle]

14 hours ago, nini said:

Regardless of your cabin type, you will sign up for disembarkation times. Last September, we signed up to be in the first group to walk off with our own bags which was 7:30 am

In a suite you don't sign up. You get a gold "any time" tag, at least on the Royal Class. Then you just went to the Concierge Lounge when ready.

Edited April 30, 2023 by jwattle

[nini]

2 hours ago, jwattle said:

In a suite you don't sign up. You get a gold "any time" tag, at least on the Royal Class. Then you just went to the Concierge Lounge when ready.

Good to know! I fear that we will not ever be in that group.

[wrongwaywatson]

On 4/26/2023 at 7:03 AM, sns1 said:

Background - This was my husband and my 30th cruise.

 

Arrival - Princess had e-mailed us that our arrival time was now at 12:30 p.m. because of the cleaning from noro.  We arrived at the time and checked in.  Our room wasn't ready until 2:30 p.m.  We went to have lunch but needed to bring our luggage with us.  We do carry on luggage.

 

Room - We were in vista suite - C750.  We originally booked a mini suite on the dolphin deck but put in the lowest bid for a vista suite and were notified a couple of weeks before the cruise that it was accepted.  We felt it was worth it.

 

We met our room steward right away and he told us that he was responsible for ALL the suites in the aft area.  This was not just the Caribe deck but all aft suites.  He did have a helper but we rarely saw them.  We would leave a note and things were taken care of but we could tell that he had a lot on his plate.   The room was tidied up twice a day.

 

We miss having a little pad of paper and pen.  Why was that done away with?????

 

International Cafe - we like this area but not sure why the coffee area is not larger.  There needs to be a line for just plain coffee.  I felt bad for people who stood in line for food and then had to stand in line for coffee.  This area can get quite busy at times. 

 

Premium Desserts - Princess needs to do away with this.  We tried it but would never order again.  It took forever to get the sundae and it was NOTHING special.  The ice cream is just plain vanilla ice cream......not premium ice cream.  The chocolate tasted like chocolate sauce....not hot fudge.  We threw away the lollipop.  I don't understand the small bottles of liquor.  We asked for Kahlua in the sundae and they poured it into a container for us.  The girl asked for our room number because there was a charge and we said that we already paid but the girl insisted on getting our cabin number.  We refused and then they just threw out the Kahlua.  People that had placed their orders were hanging around the counter.  It was very crowded.  We never went back.  Not worth the calories, hassle or cost.

 

We went to Sabitini's for dinner one night.  We had an outstanding meal.  I've always wanted to try Ossobuco.  It was to die for.  So tender and flavorful.  We normally go to Crown Grill but decided to skip it this cruise. 

 

We had club class for dining.  The staff is outstanding.  We had cruised in February and there were quite a few that were still there.  That was nice.  We could always find something that we liked on the menu.  We would go to the buffet or order food to be delivered for lunch.  Breakfast was at Sabitini's. 

 

There were people that were sick with noro on the cruise.  We did not get sick.  We wash our hands, use the liquid and try to stay away from crowds.  We did go to the Princess Theater one evening to see the comedian.  I love to lay in the sun and usually find a lounger on the sun deck, right outside of the Sanctuary.  There was only one day that it was semi busy up there. My husband likes to read up in Skywalkers or on our deck.  I do think the crew tried their best to keep people from getting sick.  I did witness many passengers not washing their hands, they touched the food and did not listen to what the crew asked them to do.  I also saw a child go to the hand washing station and her mother told her that she was ok and didn't need to wash.  The little girl said "but mom, I need to wash my hands".  The mother actually pulled the girl from the sink.   Maybe they weren't going to the buffet.......

 

We had quite a bit of OBC, so we used it in the casino.  We would have gambled more but the smell of smoke was bad.  Princess use to have 2 non smoking nights during a seven day cruise but every night was smoking night.  We were going to go to bingo during the week but they only had it on the last day.  By then we had used up our OBC.

 

Getting off the ship was a breeze.  We were one of the first off and we take our own luggage.  Getting to the parking garage was a little challenge but we were good once we found the elevators. 

 

Our only complaints were the coffee line at the International Cafe and the Premium Desserts.

As a person who gets in the IC Cafe Line and only orders 1 cup of regular coffee, no specialty coffees, no foo foo coffees, just coffee....it would be REALLY nice to have a line for those of us to get just coffee.  It literally takes 10 seconds to pour our coffee.

[nini]

2 hours ago, wrongwaywatson said:

As a person who gets in the IC Cafe Line and only orders 1 cup of regular coffee, no specialty coffees, no foo foo coffees, just coffee....it would be REALLY nice to have a line for those of us to get just coffee.  It literally takes 10 seconds to pour our coffee.

DH and I love the IC, but we have always noticed that the concept/ staff need some training and organization. Whether you like or not the famous coffee chain, they do have a system that works well moat of the time.

[RNRcruisers]

I have always wished that they had a line for plain coffee at the IC. That being said, when we were on Caribbean Princess in February the line there was not usually too bad, and that was a full ship. The whole atrium area is very small though, not much seating for coffee or evening activities. 

 

Thank you for the review. I had Ossobuco on the Regal in 2022 and loved it. It was in the MDR. Sadly not offered on the new MDR menus.