Happy commenters here verses poor reviews in the review section?

[JordanF]

I just signed up for my third Princess cruise, to take place in 2026 (Emerald Princess to Hawaii).  Our last Princess cruise was in 2006!  So I have been reading the comments on these Boards and also reading the reviews in the Review section to catch up (BTW, we loved both of our earlier Princess Cruises--just used other lines like Celebrity and RCCL for various reasons).  The commenters here are generally pretty satisfied with Princess, while many of the reviews are negative?  I suppose it is just different people, but it is an interesting dichotomy.  Any thoughts?

[karatemom2]

In general, I think people who take the time to comment here are fans of Princess. Many have a lot of cruises with Princess and keep coming back because they like the product. So here on the Princess board you find the true blue! You can count me among that group, although I don’t think Princess is perfect or above critique. However, being a fan of the product likely makes me more forgiving of certain shortcomings and more tolerant when things are less than perfection. 
 

The people just stopping in to leave reviews may be less loyal customers and therefore more critical of even minor issues. 
 

Just my theory on why you might notice a more complimentary vibe here on the Princess board. 

[memoak]

Some of the negative reviews seem to be concentrated on either missed ports due to weather or comparing their Princess cruises to ones they had taken on other lines. Every cruise line is different   There are people who think Princess is boring because they don’t have water parks or go carts. We prefer them because they don’t 

[Globaler]

3 minutes ago, karatemom2 said:

In general, I think people who take the time to comment here are fans of Princess. Many have a lot of cruises with Princess and keep coming back because they like the product. So here on the Princess board you find the true blue! You can count me among that group, although I don’t think Princess is perfect or above critique. However, being a fan of the product likely makes me more forgiving of certain shortcomings and more tolerant when things are less than perfection. 
 

The people just stopping in to leave reviews may be less loyal customers and therefore more critical of even minor issues. 
 

Just my theory on why you might notice a more complimentary vibe here on the Princess board. 

My negative comments have been made in hopes that Princess will hear them and maybe either fix them or at least consider to change some things. However; I will continue to sail Princess because overall I like the product.

[Torfamm]

I think people who are disappointed are much more likely to leave a review than those who got exactly what they expected and enjoyed it.

My guess is that the vast majority of people are perfectly satisfied with their cruises, but didn’t have an experience that was so exceptionally good that they write a review. Making comments in a forum you frequent takes much less effort.

 

 

[vcgeno]

I have been reading the reviews and I sense that people want to pay what they paid 20 years ago for the same cruise experience that they had 20 years ago.  If you look at what things cost, especially since COVID, that is not possible.  The only way the cruise lines can offer an affordable cruise is by cutting back on perks and food.  You can still have a great time even if you limit your dining to the main dining room and buffet  The meals may not be amazing but they are good enough and you can still have fun. You can relax on a regular deck and use one of the many hot tubs on board instead of paying for the Sanctuary or Enclave.  You can limit your internet to when you are in port. If you want the more upscale cruise of yesteryear you can choose to pay for the extra cost restaurants and add on the perks.  This will allow people who can afford less to still have a nice vacation and allow those who can afford more a more upscale experience. 

[Globaler]

24 minutes ago, vcgeno said:

I have been reading the reviews and I sense that people want to pay what they paid 20 years ago for the same cruise experience that they had 20 years ago.  If you look at what things cost, especially since COVID, that is not possible.  The only way the cruise lines can offer an affordable cruise is by cutting back on perks and food.  You can still have a great time even if you limit your dining to the main dining room and buffet  The meals may not be amazing but they are good enough and you can still have fun. You can relax on a regular deck and use one of the many hot tubs on board instead of paying for the Sanctuary or Enclave.  You can limit your internet to when you are in port. If you want the more upscale cruise of yesteryear you can choose to pay for the extra cost restaurants and add on the perks.  This will allow people who can afford less to still have a nice vacation and allow those who can afford more a more upscale experience. 

A lot of comments are due to changes in current or new ships. For instance, I’m rather peeved that they are removing or not having a bar in the casino. Again, some of us comment in hopes that Princess will hear us!

[Arizona Wildcat]

To the OP really simple answer using an example.

DW and I organized an antique car tour driving across the US for 55 couples.  28 nights at 20 motels/hotels and included all breakfasts, 20 lunches, 6 dinners etc.  We organized the event as unpaid volunteers.

At the final banquet and along the way we dealt with petty problems every day that each couple decided to have us handle.  DW in tears often.

After the event received 5 notes.  3 thank yous and 2 demanding a refund for meals they missed.

Human nature to complain publicly,  but not give thanks.

[memoak]

1 hour ago, Globaler said:

A lot of comments are due to changes in current or new ships. For instance, I’m rather peeved that they are removing or not having a bar in the casino. Again, some of us comment in hopes that Princess will hear us!

As far as I know casino bars have not been removed in any Grand class ships and I cruise them all the time. On the Discovery we really enjoyed the Tske 5 bar right next to the casino away from the smoke

[Globaler]

16 minutes ago, memoak said:

As far as I know casino bars have not been removed in any Grand class ships and I cruise them all the time. On the Discovery we really enjoyed the Tske 5 bar right next to the casino away from the smoke

We cruised the Enchanted last year and bar crew said it was being removed.

[memoak]

10 minutes ago, Globaler said:

We cruised the Enchanted last year and bar crew said it was being removed.

That is a Royal class ship not a Grand class

[Globaler]

3 minutes ago, memoak said:

That is a Royal class ship not a Grand class

I was speaking about all Princess ships. I don’t think I mentioned Grand class ships in my post.

[SCX22]

No doubt, Princess has changed a lot since the restart and so have all of the other cruise lines.  Princess' product is still fine, but very basic 1990s/early 2000s cruising, except for the fact there are copious upcharges for elements outside of the basic cruise fare.  Their ships don't have the new features that RCCL's megaships have, but most of the Princess loyalists don't have a problem with this.  I think this is one of the reasons why Princess can't charge more for their cruises; the amenities and experience don't stack up to higher cruise fares.  I do wish Princess would give back to passengers, now that their parent CCL is bragging about increased bookings and revenue.  Time will tell, but I'm not hopeful.

 

Complaints are part of doing business.  There's no way to please everyone.  I do think that business should take valid complaints constructively to improve the product offerings.

 

The only way to find out is to try for yourself and form your own opinion.

Edited March 10 by SCX22

[memoak]

24 minutes ago, Globaler said:

I was speaking about all Princess ships. I don’t think I mentioned Grand class ships in my post.

The fact is that a majority of Princess ships have not had any casino bar removed. There are still more Grand class than Royal class 

[Globaler]

Just now, memoak said:

The fact is that a majority of Princess ships have not had any casino bar removed. There are still more Grand class than Royal class 

Thanks for the info. I am assuming since the Sun doesn’t then that will be the trend going forward. Hope Grand class ships keep them. 🙂

[Globaler]

Apparently discontinuing the French Onion Soup isn’t going over very well on the Sun Princess!

[Rick&Jeannie]

20 hours ago, Torfamm said:

I think people who are disappointed are much more likely to leave a review than those who got exactly what they expected and enjoyed it.

Exactly this ^^^^^^^^

[Mud_Shark]

The reality is that cruise lines have been trimming their bottom line since COVID.  Of course we all know they took a severe hit during the pandemic, and have tightened their belt in small ways - perks, dinning options, loyalty benefits, available items, give-aways etc.  So it is easy to pick out what is now less than what used to be and focus on that.

 

But the bottom line is - we still cruise cuz we love it. And we still cruise Princess because we feel they give us the best bang for the buck and are the best fit for our onboard desired experience.

 

By the way - I had not heard that the french onion soup was not a steady menu item on the new Sun Princess. If true, I will have a little cry, but will not be cancelling our booking on the Sun.

[mtnesterz]

On 3/10/2024 at 12:02 PM, JordanF said:

...The commenters here are generally pretty satisfied with Princess, while many of the reviews are negative?

I can think of at least two posters who used to be regulars here on the Princess board, then got fed up with Princess. They are still on CC but sail other lines and post in the related sections. So you don't read their disappointments here. Those of us still here, have at least some level of contentment.  Those who found Princess a One-And-Done line can write a bad review, then they're not on this board either. I think that accounts for it.

You will observe changes since 2006. Honestly, we feel in a jam. We don't like the changes, but to up our game to the next level and sail Oceania or Azamara is twice the money, or more, per night and we are retired, fixed income. So we are still here and happy to be able to afford to cruise.

Edited March 11 by mtnesterz

[memoak]

3 minutes ago, mtnesterz said:

I can think of at least two posters who used to be regulars here on the Princess board, then got fed up with Princess. They are still on CC but sail other lines and post in the related sections. So you don't read their disappointments here. Those of us still here, have at least some level of contentment.  Those who found Princess a One-And-Done line can write a bad review, then they're not on this board either. I think that accounts for it.

You will observe changes since 2006. Honestly, we feel in a jam. We don't like the changes, but to up our game to the next level and sail Oceania or Azamara is twice the money, or more, per night and we are retired, fixed income. So we are still here and happy to be able to afford to cruise.

There are still lots of posters who complain about things that are not going to change. Royal class ship don’t have casino bars, this ship didn’t have Alfredo’s, this ship doesn’t have Vines. My goodness you know it advance what ships have what things on board

[Globaler]

19 minutes ago, memoak said:

There are still lots of posters who complain about things that are not going to change. Royal class ship don’t have casino bars, this ship didn’t have Alfredo’s, this ship doesn’t have Vines. My goodness you know it advance what ships have what things on board

Well not true - the Sun didn’t advertise no bar in the Casino. Is it going to stop me from sailing on it - NO Is it going to prevent me from sailing on it in the future NO. However; I reserve the right to make a comment or two on Cruise Critic.

[memoak]

22 minutes ago, Globaler said:

Well not true - the Sun didn’t advertise no bar in the Casino. Is it going to stop me from sailing on it - NO Is it going to prevent me from sailing on it in the future NO. However; I reserve the right to make a comment or two on Cruise Critic.

Posting deck plans is pretty much the same as advertising. We look at what each ship offers and make our choices from that. We are not going to complain about things that we know about in advance

[Globaler]

3 minutes ago, memoak said:

Posting deck plans is pretty much the same as advertising. We look at what each ship offers and make our choices from that. We are not going to complain about things that we know about in advance

Good for you!

[MacMadame]

6 hours ago, mtnesterz said:

Those of us still here, have at least some level of contentment.

Or haven't cruised yet! LOL

 

Sometimes the negativity does sour my excitement for our upcoming cruise so then I read fewer threads and concentrate on the factual ones. If I had to, I would just take a break but right now it hasn't come to that.

[Globaler]

7 hours ago, MacMadame said:

Or haven't cruised yet! LOL

 

Sometimes the negativity does sour my excitement for our upcoming cruise so then I read fewer threads and concentrate on the factual ones. If I had to, I would just take a break but right now it hasn't come to that.

For me it is pre-cruise expectation leveling. I find good, bad and informative information. It’s all in how you process the information. When I set sail, it’s all fun and positivity.