Caribbean Princess 6/3 - 6/10

[MamaTried]

My husband, our two sons (ages 11 and 16) left home June 2 on Continental for Ft. Lauderdale. We spent the night at the Marriott Renaissance Hotel across from the port. Pleasant hotel and friendly staff and they upgraded us to a suite. We happened upon CC member Zeus in the bar (imagine that?:D ) and his wife coincidentally!

 

Taxi to port was about $15 which seems silly since it's right across the street but you cannot enter on your own and that's just the way it is.

 

Embarkation from the time we got out of the taxi and up to our cabin was probably 45 minutes and went very smoothly. This was around 12:30 I believe.

 

Our cabins were on the Caribe Deck port side midway between mid-ship and aft. Great location! One cabin was a balcony and the other was an interior directly across. Our cabin steward was Tony/Antonino from the Phillipines and he was very sweet and attentive and did an excellent job. The balcony was very nice - full sun in the morning, but you have both covered and uncovered.

 

Our kids immediately went to check out their respective programs which I must say they thoroghly enjoyed all week long! Our older son particularly enjoyed hanging out with other teens from all over and we probably only saw him for an hour each day. They were both very busy with their activites and we tried to at least all eat dinner together each evening but generally they were off like a prom dress before we even finished our meal.

 

We chose Anytime Dining, however I think we only ate in the Palm Dining Room 3 times. Food was excellent each time. We very much enjoyed dining at Sterling's. Those meals by far were our favorites - love the ambiance and the waiters were very attentive but not overly. Definately worth the surcharge. I wasn't always thrilled with the fare in Horizon's/Cafe Caribe, but I'm picky and that's my problem not theirs. My husband seemed to enjoy it all right, especially the roasted meats. I didn't find it total chaos either as I expected after reading so many posts regarding the navigation of it. I think you really have to keep an open mind regarding food on a cruise ship and remember that they are preparing for thousands of people each day so it really is for lack of a better word, "institution style" at times. Overall I think they did an excellent job with the food and especially cleanliness. Pizza and burgers were pretty good too. How can you complain when you're in a wet swimsuit and you don't have to get dressed or go far for a quick, hot bite to eat?

 

St. Maarten - Oh so beautiful and unique! We drove around the entire island, stopping at various points. We swam at Mullet Bay Beach which we had almost entirely to ourselves. Very calm waters and so serene. The entrance to beach area is a little trashy but the beach itself is breathtaking. Apparently the Dutch do not have a public waste system so don't let the entrace to the area mislead you if you decide to go there. If you do not want to be with the crowds then I'd suggest Mullet Bay. Very interesting to see the differences between the French side and the Dutch side. Would love to go back there for a longer stay and more exploring.

 

St. John - Shopping for jewelry and watches and then we took the sky tram up to Paradise Point for a spectacular view of St. John and surrounding islands. Had lunch at the top - pretty good food and wide variety offered, also famous for the Bushwhacker which was pretty tasty. Would have loved to have gone to a beach here but ran out of time.

 

Princess Cay - Stormy weather. Snorkled, ate, and hurried back to the ship.

 

Sea Days - We sunned, swam, gambled, enjoyed the lounges/clubs and a little of the entertainment. I won $200 at Bingo and my husband over a $1000 at craps. :) Whoo Hoo!

 

Embarkation - Swift and orderly, at least I thought so. We waited in Horizons and ate breakfast till we were called. Only complaint - too early!

 

Overall, I can't think of anything we were unhappy or dissappointed with. This cruise, our first, exceeded our expectations and probably could not have been any better! We highly recommend it and hope to cruise again with Princess.

[Whimsy]

Thanks for the review. We will be on the CB in 98 days!

[jlp20]

....Our cabins were on the Caribe Deck port side midway between mid-ship and aft. Great location! One cabin was a balcony and the other was an interior directly across......

 

 

Just by chance, on the last night, did you ask me if I had anything good in my bag as it was put in the hall?

[janetz]

My husband, our two sons (ages 11 and 16) left home June 2 on Continental for Ft. Lauderdale. We spent the night at the Marriott Renaissance Hotel across from the port. Pleasant hotel and friendly staff and they upgraded us to a suite. We happened upon CC member Zeus in the bar (imagine that?:D ) and his wife coincidentally!

 

Taxi to port was about $15 which seems silly since it's right across the street but you cannot enter on your own and that's just the way it is.

 

Embarkation from the time we got out of the taxi and up to our cabin was probably 45 minutes and went very smoothly. This was around 12:30 I believe.

 

Our cabins were on the Caribe Deck port side midway between mid-ship and aft. Great location! One cabin was a balcony and the other was an interior directly across. Our cabin steward was Tony/Antonino from the Phillipines and he was very sweet and attentive and did an excellent job. The balcony was very nice - full sun in the morning, but you have both covered and uncovered.

 

Our kids immediately went to check out their respective programs which I must say they thoroghly enjoyed all week long! Our older son particularly enjoyed hanging out with other teens from all over and we probably only saw him for an hour each day. They were both very busy with their activites and we tried to at least all eat dinner together each evening but generally they were off like a prom dress before we even finished our meal.

 

We chose Anytime Dining, however I think we only ate in the Palm Dining Room 3 times. Food was excellent each time. We very much enjoyed dining at Sterling's. Those meals by far were our favorites - love the ambiance and the waiters were very attentive but not overly. Definately worth the surcharge. I wasn't always thrilled with the fare in Horizon's/Cafe Caribe, but I'm picky and that's my problem not theirs. My husband seemed to enjoy it all right, especially the roasted meats. I didn't find it total chaos either as I expected after reading so many posts regarding the navigation of it. I think you really have to keep an open mind regarding food on a cruise ship and remember that they are preparing for thousands of people each day so it really is for lack of a better word, "institution style" at times. Overall I think they did an excellent job with the food and especially cleanliness. Pizza and burgers were pretty good too. How can you complain when you're in a wet swimsuit and you don't have to get dressed or go far for a quick, hot bite to eat?

 

St. Maarten - Oh so beautiful and unique! We drove around the entire island, stopping at various points. We swam at Mullet Bay Beach which we had almost entirely to ourselves. Very calm waters and so serene. The entrance to beach area is a little trashy but the beach itself is breathtaking. Apparently the Dutch do not have a public waste system so don't let the entrace to the area mislead you if you decide to go there. If you do not want to be with the crowds then I'd suggest Mullet Bay. Very interesting to see the differences between the French side and the Dutch side. Would love to go back there for a longer stay and more exploring.

 

St. John - Shopping for jewelry and watches and then we took the sky tram up to Paradise Point for a spectacular view of St. John and surrounding islands. Had lunch at the top - pretty good food and wide variety offered, also famous for the Bushwhacker which was pretty tasty. Would have loved to have gone to a beach here but ran out of time.

 

Princess Cay - Stormy weather. Snorkled, ate, and hurried back to the ship.

 

Sea Days - We sunned, swam, gambled, enjoyed the lounges/clubs and a little of the entertainment. I won $200 at Bingo and my husband over a $1000 at craps. :) Whoo Hoo!

 

Embarkation - Swift and orderly, at least I thought so. We waited in Horizons and ate breakfast till we were called. Only complaint - too early!

 

Overall, I can't think of anything we were unhappy or dissappointed with. This cruise, our first, exceeded our expectations and probably could not have been any better! We highly recommend it and hope to cruise again with Princess.

 

 

Can you tell me who your rented from in St.Marten and the cost? Sounds fun.:)

[MamaTried]

You mean am I "luggage thief" ? :D Yep that was me! Hi neighbor.

[jlp20]

Only 3000 pax, you are hard to forget...

[NthernLgts]

Glad you had a great time. We'll be sailing her again in 63 days. We will do Sterlings this time!

[MamaTried]

Can you tell me who your rented from in St.Marten and the cost? Sounds fun.:)

 

Sorry, I should have clarified...we actually did not do the driving. We used No Rush Tours.

[MamaTried]

Only 3000 pax, you are hard to forget...

 

 

Uh, thanks...I think.

[janetz]

Sorry, I should have clarified...we actually did not do the driving. We used No Rush Tours.

 

 

Do you have a website for them...Did you think it was worth your money? Thanks ahead. :)

[roe2ship]

Thanks for the review. Will you confirm if formal nights were Monday and Friday? Also did you stop at Princess Cays the following day upon boarding or was that your last stop on Saturday? TIA

[Coolmama_1]

Great review. We are looking forward to our cruise in Jan.:)

[seagarsmoker]

Thanks for the review. Will you confirm if formal nights were Monday and Friday? Also did you stop at Princess Cays the following day upon boarding or was that your last stop on Saturday? TIA

 

That week, formals were Monday & Friday. Yes we did Princess Cays on Saturday.

 

Thanks for the review. We also had a great cruise!

[g35]

My husband, our two sons (ages 11 and 16) left home June 2 on Continental for Ft. Lauderdale...

Our cabins were on the Caribe Deck port side midway between mid-ship and aft. Great location! One cabin was a balcony and the other was an interior directly across. ...

 

Our kids immediately went to check out their respective programs which I must say they thoroghly enjoyed all week long! Our older son particularly enjoyed hanging out with other teens from all over and we probably only saw him for an hour each day. They were both very busy with their activites and we tried to at least all eat dinner together each evening but generally they were off like a prom dress before we even finished our meal.quote]

 

Thank you for your review! We sail in July and I hope our experience is as pleasant as yours was!

 

2 questions though...I am assuming that you and DH shared one cabin and your kids were across the hall - did you book the cabins as such or did you have the purser switch keys once you were onboard? If so, did they give you a hard time about it?

 

Also, I have an 11 DD and 16 DS...the 16 yr old is excited about the teen club but the 11yr is worried that all the activities for her age group end at 10p, which also limits our availability to enjoy the adult shows and lounges. Any suggestions?

[MamaTried]

g35 - Yes, that was our set-up even though it was not intended. You do have to book it with one parent in each room regardless of how you intend to occupy the rooms. The balcony room was already set up with a king and the interior with twins so apparently this is done all the time. I was leery at first b/c of the younger one but after a trial run the first 2 days I felt comfortable enough to continue our stay that way. We had an extra set of keys made for everyone so that we all had keys to both rooms.

 

Yes, the pirateers does shut down at 10. There is an arcade in the casino which some of the kids went to afterwards and a couple of times he was just content to go back to the room, rest and watch tv or play his psp. He and I went to the MUTS at 10:15 a couple of times also which was a nice experience to do together. We had a good message system so we all knew where everyone was and he knew not to open the door to anyone but us. The closing at 10:00 was really his only complaint, some of the 11's and 12's like to stay up later as you know. :)

[g35]

g35 - Yes, that was our set-up even though it was not intended. You do have to book it with one parent in each room regardless of how you intend to occupy the rooms. The balcony room was already set up with a king and the interior with twins so apparently this is done all the time. I was leery at first b/c of the younger one but after a trial run the first 2 days I felt comfortable enough to continue our stay that way. We had an extra set of keys made for everyone so that we all had keys to both rooms.

 

Yes, the pirateers does shut down at 10. There is an arcade in the casino which some of the kids went to afterwards and a couple of times he was just content to go back to the room, rest and watch tv or play his psp. He and I went to the MUTS at 10:15 a couple of times also which was a nice experience to do together. We had a good message system so we all knew where everyone was and he knew not to open the door to anyone but us. The closing at 10:00 was really his only complaint, some of the 11's and 12's like to stay up later as you know. :)

 

That's good to hear! We will definitely get extra keys for all of us.

 

I'm not sure that my 11yr old going on 30 would be content going back to the cabin by herself, but MUTS is something we can definitely do together. And yes, she is most definitely a late night pre-teen!

[MamaTried]

Try to get those extra keys a.s.a.p., the purser's desk gets a little hectic that first day - it will only take a couple of minutes.

 

There will be an orientation to attend that first night regarding the kid's programs, only about 30 minutes, and you have to let them know at that time whether the 11-yr. old will sign herself in/out or if you will have to. My thought was if they are old enough to be in junior high they can sign themselves in or out. Besides you don't want to have to stop what you are doing everytime to do that.

 

Also for the kids I highly recommend the Coke card. You know how often they get a coke, take 3 sips out of it and then leave it... this way they can get as many as they want any time anywhere. I think they are just under $30, purchased seperately sodas are about $1.75 w/gratuity.

[g35]

Try to get those extra keys a.s.a.p., the purser's desk gets a little hectic that first day - it will only take a couple of minutes.

 

There will be an orientation to attend that first night regarding the kid's programs, only about 30 minutes, and you have to let them know at that time whether the 11-yr. old will sign herself in/out or if you will have to. My thought was if they are old enough to be in junior high they can sign themselves in or out. Besides you don't want to have to stop what you are doing everytime to do that.

 

Also for the kids I highly recommend the Coke card. You know how often they get a coke, take 3 sips out of it and then leave it... this way they can get as many as they want any time anywhere. I think they are just under $30, purchased seperately sodas are about $1.75 w/gratuity.

 

 

Great recommendations! Thank you!!

[celebrate20]

Great review, thanks.

Can you give me a run down of the types of activities they offered in the 11yr old group? We leave Aug 25 and Id like to give the kids a heads up on what to expect. Also. what did you mean by a message system? I was wondering if a baby monitor would work for the rooms. We have the same set up as you did. Also, will walkie talkies work on the ship. I was thinking that would be a great way to keep track.

Thanks!

[celebrate20]

Another question: I read somewhere that they offered off ship excursions for the kids to go on without their parents. Do you know anything about those?

What movies were showing on the MUTs when you were on the ship?

Thanks

[Pixelator]

Thanks, all, for your reviews and info. My 16 yr old daughter Emily and I are going on our first cruise Aug 12-19 on the Caribbean Princess. I booked a "guarantee" mini-suite on Dolphin Deck that allowed Princess to assign our room later with a guarantee at level AC -- checked back later and they assigned us to an AA mini-suite, better location at two levels upgrade at no cost! good deal! 52 days to go and we can't wait! I'm a photographer and look forward to shooting pix on board and on shore days. Does anyone who has cruised Princess previously know how much of a discount they offer if you sign up on board for another cruise later? And if so, do you have to pick a specific cruise/date, or can you sign up for a certain cruise package and pick date later? Thanks, all!

Bob Laubach

daughter Emily

Manassas, VA

[suzyaz]

My husband, our two sons (ages 11 and 16) left home June 2 on Continental for Ft. Lauderdale. We spent the night at the Marriott Renaissance Hotel across from the port. Pleasant hotel and friendly staff and they upgraded us to a suite. We happened upon CC member Zeus in the bar (imagine that?:D ) and his wife coincidentally!

 

Amanda Palmer

 

Embarkation from the time we got out of the taxi and up to our cabin was probably 45 minutes and went very smoothly. This was around 12:30 I believe.

 

Our cabins were on the Caribe Deck port side midway between mid-ship and aft. Great location! One cabin was a balcony and the other was an interior directly across. Our cabin steward was Tony/Antonino from the Phillipines and he was very sweet and attentive and did an excellent job. The balcony was very nice - full sun in the morning, but you have both covered and uncovered.

 

Our kids immediately went to check out their respective programs which I must say they thoroghly enjoyed all week long! Our older son particularly enjoyed hanging out with other teens from all over and we probably only saw him for an hour each day. They were both very busy with their activites and we tried to at least all eat dinner together each evening but generally they were off like a prom dress before we even finished our meal.

 

We chose Anytime Dining, however I think we only ate in the Palm Dining Room 3 times. Food was excellent each time. We very much enjoyed dining at Sterling's. Those meals by far were our favorites - love the ambiance and the waiters were very attentive but not overly. Definately worth the surcharge. I wasn't always thrilled with the fare in Horizon's/Cafe Caribe, but I'm picky and that's my problem not theirs. My husband seemed to enjoy it all right, especially the roasted meats. I didn't find it total chaos either as I expected after reading so many posts regarding the navigation of it. I think you really have to keep an open mind regarding food on a cruise ship and remember that they are preparing for thousands of people each day so it really is for lack of a better word, "institution style" at times. Overall I think they did an excellent job with the food and especially cleanliness. Pizza and burgers were pretty good too. How can you complain when you're in a wet swimsuit and you don't have to get dressed or go far for a quick, hot bite to eat?

 

St. Maarten - Oh so beautiful and unique! We drove around the entire island, stopping at various points. We swam at Mullet Bay Beach which we had almost entirely to ourselves. Very calm waters and so serene. The entrance to beach area is a little trashy but the beach itself is breathtaking. Apparently the Dutch do not have a public waste system so don't let the entrace to the area mislead you if you decide to go there. If you do not want to be with the crowds then I'd suggest Mullet Bay. Very interesting to see the differences between the French side and the Dutch side. Would love to go back there for a longer stay and more exploring.

 

St. John - Shopping for jewelry and watches and then we took the sky tram up to Paradise Point for a spectacular view of St. John and surrounding islands. Had lunch at the top - pretty good food and wide variety offered, also famous for the Bushwhacker which was pretty tasty. Would have loved to have gone to a beach here but ran out of time.

 

Princess Cay - Stormy weather. Snorkled, ate, and hurried back to the ship.

 

Sea Days - We sunned, swam, gambled, enjoyed the lounges/clubs and a little of the entertainment. I won $200 at Bingo and my husband over a $1000 at craps. :) Whoo Hoo!

 

Embarkation - Swift and orderly, at least I thought so. We waited in Horizons and ate breakfast till we were called. Only complaint - too early!

 

Overall, I can't think of anything we were unhappy or dissappointed with. This cruise, our first, exceeded our expectations and probably could not have been any better! We highly recommend it and hope to cruise again with Princess.

 

---We are planning to fly in to Ft Lauderdale and rent a car, rent a hotel room. Wake up the next morning and hubby drop us off at port with luggage. He was going to turn the car in at rental and walk back to port since it is so close. What I'm reading that you are saying they won't let him walk on, he is going to have to get a Taxi???