2 Concerns about the Caribbean Princess

[DeRon]

I have 2 concerns about the Caribbean Princess that I need someone to clear up for me (please).

1. I have read that the food is mediocre at best.
   
2. I have also read that the ship feels more crowded than it's sisters because of the extra deck.

Are these things true?

[Kerry&LuAnn]

The only other ships we have sailed on were Royal Caribbean's Voyager class ships. We found the food on the Caribbean Princess to be superior.

 

As for the size, the Caribbean Princess offers big-ship amenities with a small-ship feel. It is designed with so many smaller public spaces, that we never felt that we were part of huge mass of people. In fact, even though we were traveling during spring break with a full load of passengers, we never felt crowded at all.

 

We enjoyed our cruise on the Caribbean Princess last spring so much that we are going back again this spring!

[Toto2Kansas]

I have 2 concerns about the Caribbean Princess that I need someone to clear up for me (please).

1. I have read that the food is mediocre at best.
   
2. I have also read that the ship feels more crowded than it's sisters because of the extra deck.

Are these things true?

 

Each time we have sailed on the Caribbean Princess, we have not even bothered to go to the dining room. The Cafe Caribe has such great food, we didn't want to miss it. But yes, we did hear lots of complaints from those that did dine each night in the dining room. Lots of people to feed all at once and they said the service was slow and the food was just OK. Remember, these are reports told to us by other passengers and not first hand reports. We loved it, the Cafe Caribe was rarely crowded at all and the food was fantastic.

 

If you are used to the larger ships in the fleet, likely you will barely notice the extra deck of passengers onboard. We felt the same way until we sailed on the Caribbean Princess. We noticed it so little, that we returned for a second time a year later. And we are not that fond of the larger Princess ships, which should tell you something.

[drpack]

Each time we have sailed on the Caribbean Princess, we have not even bothered to go to the dining room. The Cafe Caribe has such great food, we didn't want to miss it.

 

I agree, we've been on the CB 3 times and have only eaten in a dinning room once. That time we walked up to the Palm Dinning Room around 7:00 pm and were seated at once at a table for two. There have been several times were we had to hunt for a table at Cafe Caribe in the evenings, but we never actually had to wait for a table.

[spongerob]

The subject of food is entirely subjective. I'm sure if you looked at the many member reviews you would find comments that the food was great, too.

 

As far as being crowded, I didn't think the ship felt any more crowded than any other grand-class ship. In fact, it's often noted that sometimes the older grand-class ships (Grand, Golden, Star) feel a bit empty.

[dsfitz]

Agree. Of all our cruises, I would say that we enjoyed the dining room food on the Caribbean Princess the least, but to be fair, it was probably a B to B+ when all of our others have been A's. It isn't bad. We had anytime dining and had some hiccups with that - but overall it was fine. We went to the Sterling Steakhouse and really enjoyed that.

 

We never felt crowded except when we went to the 8:30 show. On our cruise, if you weren't there by about 8:10, you couldn't get a seat. The late show was no problem. Other than that, it was fine.

[Colo Cruiser]

I disagree about the extra deck making it crowded, I have sailed both the Grand class ships with and without the extra deck and I feel no difference.

 

I have felt the food on all my Princess cruises have been excellent. :)

[aclay]

The Cafe Caribe has such great food, we didn't want to miss it. But yes, we did hear lots of complaints from those that did dine each night in the dining room. Lots of people to feed all at once and they said the service was slow and the food was just OK. Remember, these are reports told to us by other passengers and not first hand reports. We loved it, the Cafe Caribe was rarely crowded at all and the food was fantastic.

 

If you are used to the larger ships in the fleet, likely you will barely notice the extra deck of passengers onboard. We felt the same way until we sailed on the Caribbean Princess. We noticed it so little, that we returned for a second time a year later. And we are not that fond of the larger Princess ships, which should tell you something.

 

sorry for the ignorance - but can you tell me a little more about the Cafe Caribe - this will be our first experience of it after ten other Princess cruises we have done including the Star, Golden and Sapphire. Is it a PC dining option or just a buffet similar (but better) to Horizon court? What kind of dishes do they offer?

cheers

Alex

[spongerob]

Cafe Caribe is an extension of Horizon Court. It is best known for its seafood offerings. Other menu choices might include Caribbean dishes. Usually the line-up of menu items at dinner is different from the other two buffet lines, at least for the evening meal.

[cbpanda]

We found the food on the CB to be wonderful. We ate in the dining room every night. As a matter of fact, we had reservations for Sabitinis and cancelled it because we enjoyed the dining room food so much.

 

We loved the Caribbean Princess. It never felt crowded at all until we were trying to disembark. That was the only time I notice that there was 3000 other people on board with us. :D

 

We enjoyed our cruise last summer so much we are returning this summer for the same one.

[Host Caroline]

Agree....with the above re the CB.. only other time crowded on embarkation day if you get there early as we did last two years..

[stoneharborlady]

Loved the CB, and are cruising her again in July. Dining room food was wonderful, as was the Caribe Cafe. I also had no problem with Horizon Court. The only time we noticed crowding was in the theater, had to get there early to get a seat, and tendering back to the ship from Princess Cays was a bit of a wait. Of course, we waited till the last minute to leave, we were having such a good time. Cant imagine you wont love it!

Karen

[MattInFLL]

First rule of reading food reviews - take them with a grain of salt. Our individual tastes and expectations are all so different, and food is such an emotional subject, the only way to know is to try it yourself. And if you are a culinary expert, or gourmand, no mass market cruise ship is going to give you what you want. For me, I was the least satisfied with the food on Diamond Princess (my only Princess experience so far), but even then, I found a few things I really liked. Does that make me wary about CB? Nope, not at all. If you are unsatisfied by Horizon Court for breakfast and lunch, remeber that the Coral dining room serves both, and usually the dining room is not crowded for either meal.

 

As for crowd control - I have read that embarkation on CB is the "worst" and read it was a "breeze" - again - different people, different expectations. Comparing the on board experience to a Voyager class ship is apples and oranges. Voyager class ships handle crowds by having a few really huge open spaces. Grand class ships handle crowds by having many more smaller areas. Personally, I preferred the Voyager way, but that's just a personal preference.

 

Every cruise is what you make it!

[Raceroc]

Food was good... Embarkation was OK (lots of people but it went fairly quick). The only times we really noticed the ship was crowded was at the shows. Sometimes it was difficult to find a place to sit.

[tayl]

I have only been on one other cruise(Holland America),so I'm not a savy cruiser!

I loved the ship. The first day it feels a little crowded as everyone is together for the sailaway. After that everyone seems to find their favorite place to hang out. There are lots of places. We didn't feel crowded.

This ship has something for everyone. Lots of varied activities.

The food was good. It was not exciting or innovative. The first week we did anytime dining. I don't really care for it. Many people like this option. We did go to Sabtinis and the Sterling steak house. They are both fine. If I were to choose one though, it would be Sabatinis, just for the experience.

We went to the Horizon court and Cafe Caribe. Cafe Caribe is open until 4am. Besides the buffet, they will cook you a steak or a western omlete if you wish btwn 11:30 -4:00am). There is plenty of food.

There is a lot of seafood on this ship....yipeee!

After the sailaway, they have a cold seafood buffet(the Horizon court)-cold crab,lobster claws, shrimp, smoked salmon, etc

The next night it was a hot seafood buffet. On the second week we had second seating-we prefer this to anytime dining.

At 6pm or before 11pm we would go to the Horizon or Caribe. If we liked something we'd have a snack.

In the dining room I believe on thurs. night had crab and on fri. night they had lobster tails. Don't be afraid to order seconds or even thirds.

No matter what is on the menu in the dining room,you can always get steak, chicken, fish or pasta.

They also have a spa and vegitarian menu.

Again. as others have said, food reviews are subjective. We enjoyed the seafood.

The rest of the time the food was good to adequate. We ate breakfest and lunch, both in the buffet and dining and dining room.

The only thing we have to compare it to is Holland America. Their food was innovative and I looked forward to eating. Here I found myself deciding if I should even bother with desert.

Now, having said this, if this was the worst of my problems (trust me I didn't starve). Then every thing went fine.

I asked my travelling companion her opinion. She stated that she loved the ship. Had the food been better, it would have made the 14 days more enjoyable.

Again, it's all subjective.

In the end, I didn't have to cook, or clean.I was on a great ship, with a fantastic staff. Lots of activity choices.

Go and have a good time!

[tayl]

I have only been on one other cruise(Holland America),so I'm not a savy cruiser!

I loved the ship. The first day it feels a little crowded as everyone is together for the sailaway. After that everyone seems to find their favorite place to hang out. There are lots of places. We didn't feel crowded.

This ship has something for everyone. Lots of varied activities.

The food was good. It was not exciting or innovative. The first week we did anytime dining. I don't really care for it. Many people like this option. We did go to Sabtinis and the Sterling steak house. They are both fine. If I were to choose one though, it would be Sabatinis, just for the experience.

We went to the Horizon court and Cafe Caribe. Cafe Caribe is open until 4am. Besides the buffet, they will cook you a steak or a western omlete if you wish btwn 11:30 -4:00am). There is plenty of food.

There is a lot of seafood on this ship....yipeee!

After the sailaway, they have a cold seafood buffet(the Horizon court)-cold crab,lobster claws, shrimp, smoked salmon, etc

The next night it was a hot seafood buffet. On the second week we had second seating-we prefer this to anytime dining.

At 6pm or before 11pm we would go to the Horizon or Caribe. If we liked something we'd have a snack.

In the dining room I believe on thurs. night had crab and on fri. night they had lobster tails. Don't be afraid to order seconds or even thirds.

No matter what is on the menu in the dining room,you can always get steak, chicken, fish or pasta.

They also have a spa and vegitarian menu.

Again. as others have said, food reviews are subjective. We enjoyed the seafood.

The rest of the time the food was good to adequate. We ate breakfest and lunch, both in the buffet and dining and dining room.

The only thing we have to compare it to is Holland America. Their food was innovative and I looked forward to eating. Here I found myself deciding if I should even bother with desert.

Now, having said this, if this was the worst of my problems (trust me I didn't starve). Then every thing went fine.

I asked my travelling companion her opinion. She stated that she loved the ship. Had the food been better, it would have made the 14 days more enjoyable.

Again, it's all subjective.

In the end, I didn't have to cook, or clean.I was on a great ship, with a fantastic staff. Lots of activity choices.

Go and have a good time!

[tayl]

Sorry for the double post !

[marinearchit]

Wrong and wrong.:D

 

Sailed her over Thanksgiving. She was at full capacity with 3500+ passengers.

 

Never felt crowded any time. (Well, slightly crowded on formal nights with the pictures. But everybody being all fancy and everything is cool.)

Always seats at the pools, never any lines. Embarking/Disembarking is done quickly.

 

In ports we got on and off the ship instantly. Slid our Cruise Cards and glided off/on. Tenders were quick also.

 

Food was the best I've ever had. I tried alot of new things. I'd recommend this ship to anybody!

 

Also, the ship is beautiful.

[MizzouMary]

Each time we have sailed on the Caribbean Princess, we have not even bothered to go to the dining room. The Cafe Caribe has such great food, we didn't want to miss it. But yes, we did hear lots of complaints from those that did dine each night in the dining room. Lots of people to feed all at once and they said the service was slow and the food was just OK. Remember, these are reports told to us by other passengers and not first hand reports. We loved it, the Cafe Caribe was rarely crowded at all and the food was fantastic.

 

If you are used to the larger ships in the fleet, likely you will barely notice the extra deck of passengers onboard. We felt the same way until we sailed on the Caribbean Princess. We noticed it so little, that we returned for a second time a year later. And we are not that fond of the larger Princess ships, which should tell you something.

 

I agree as well. We were on the CB in Sept. 05 and Feb. 06 and will be leaving in 12 days for another voyage on the CB. We did not eat dinner once in the dining room on the last two cruises. Instead, we chose the Cafe Caribe and Sterling Steakhouse. The Cafe Caribe was very good and served most of the same entrees that were being served in the dining rooms. There are a few items you cannot get in the Cafe Caribe such as the Princess Love Boat Dream dessert and ice cream, for example. The food in the Cafe Caribe is served buffet style, so that turns some off either because they like to order off of a menu and be served at the table or they don't like touching the same serving utensils as other passengers. The place gets crowded sometimes and the buffet design is not ideal. However, the CC has cloth covered tables at night and there are wait staff to take your drink orders. You should try it one evening to see if you like it. One nice aspect of the Cafe Caribe is that you don't have to dress up like you would in the dining rooms. After a long hectic day on the islands, it's nice to not have to iron clothes and dress up when you just want to have a relaxing dinner and unwind.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Mary

[psklak]

DH and I sailed on the CB mid March of 06 (spring break). Other than some of the problems(?) mentioned above, our only instance of too many people was in the photo shop. Someone please change this process!!! The CB had many small areas to just sit and relax. We never found them too crowded.

The food was fine. We have been sailing on different lines for the past 24 years. We have sailed Princess (our favorite), RCCL, Disney and Carnival. We love personal choice and have yet to wait for a table for 2. We're not gourmet eaters so a good piece of beef and potatoes was fine for us. We really liked the Cafe Caribe. Good variety of food and a nice atmosphere. Try the short ribs if they have them!

Just have a great time - you're on a cruise!!!!

[MizzouMary]

One other thing I forgot to mention. On the first night, they have a cold Seafood Extravaganza. Make sure you go all the way back to the Cafe Caribe since they serve the seafood at both the buffet and CC. The CC has more of a selection.

[MizzouMary]

Sorry, this is a duplicate.

[the_dylaness]

I thought the food was pretty good (not as good as I've had at some land restaurants, granted, but considering the price difference when you break it down, well worth it.) I had several things that were very tasty, most things were pretty much good, and a few things weren't to my liking but that's natural, right?

 

I personally felt that CB was a little crowded although my only experience to compare it to was on a not-very-full RCI ship on a 11-day Aust/NZ itinerary- a completely different creature. We did not have much trouble getting a table for 2 even at peak times (we only had to wait once, and once on a formal night we gave in and sat with another couple.) Can't speak for theaters as we didn't go... if you are truly concerned, book at least a balcony room so if it does feel crowded you can escape there. We were amazed at all the balcony rooms available... and how few of them ever had people on them!

[aclay]

I agree as well. We were on the CB in Sept. 05 and Feb. 06 and will be leaving in 12 days for another voyage on the CB. We did not eat dinner once in the dining room on the last two cruises. Instead, we chose the Cafe Caribe and Sterling Steakhouse. The Cafe Caribe was very good and served most of the same entrees that were being served in the dining rooms. There are a few items you cannot get in the Cafe Caribe such as the Princess Love Boat Dream dessert and ice cream, for example. The food in the Cafe Caribe is served buffet style, so that turns some off either because they like to order off of a menu and be served at the table or they don't like touching the same serving utensils as other passengers. The place gets crowded sometimes and the buffet design is not ideal. However, the CC has cloth covered tables at night and there are wait staff to take your drink orders. You should try it one evening to see if you like it. One nice aspect of the Cafe Caribe is that you don't have to dress up like you would in the dining rooms. After a long hectic day on the islands, it's nice to not have to iron clothes and dress up when you just want to have a relaxing dinner and unwind.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Mary

 

Thanks Mary, it sounds like we'll have to give Cafe Caribe a try, DW loves seafood and I love caribbean style cooking:cool: Have a great cruise on Feb 4th - that's my DW's birthday!!