Diamond Princess - 10/9 - A Good Cruise

[mina]

We just returned from the Diamond Princess and had a good time. It was a good cruise -- since we only sail Princess and have always had Supurb cruises -- I am hesitant to write this review for fear of being flamed by pointing out the things that resulted in this cruise not reaching Princess' usual excellent level. However, I am going to take the risk and hope the readers understand -- it was a GOOD CRUISE -- and I will definitely sail princess again. However, we will now choose to try another line next time to see if they can match or exceed our Princess experiences. Had this been another "excellent" cruise, we probably would not risk the potential dissappointment of another line. With that said ::::gulp::::: here are my impressions:

 

The Diamond Princess is a beautiful ship with a great layout. Although full, we never experienced crowding or significant lines, once on board. Below are my general impressions of this cruise:

 

EMBARKATION: This was subpar. Due to a delay of prior cruise passengers getting off the ship, embarkation was delayed. We had one party member that needed wheelchair help to get to embarkation and can not stand for long periods. The embarkation lounge had no designated handicapped seating -- as such - this member was dropped in the middle of the lounge - and left to stand until embarkation was ready to start. I went to a crew member and asked if they had any handicapped seating available and was responded with 'there are 3,000 people waiting to get on this ship, you will have to find a spot or stand." I asked if they could take some of the freestanding chairs and make seating for the handicapped folks that were being wheeled up (there were only about two wheelchairs and porters so people were waiting for this service). He responded, "If you want to, go ask the people sitting there for their chairs." Fortunately, we found him a spot to sit. He was then allowed to board early - I asked if we could go with him and was told no, the porter would help him. That would have been okay had I not seen large families (8 plus) with one or two children (the rest were adults) all boarding at the same time together as part of the "special needs" boarding. Not a big deal - but when you go on a cruise together - you like to get on the ship together, get your photo and we wanted to help him with his carry ons once he got to his cabin.

 

CABIN: We had a wonderful balcony cabin AFT. It was great -- however, the rumors about vibration in the aft cabins are true - at least it was for us. While at sea, our room vibrated constantly. Fortunately, we found that to be a positive, as we love motion and the vibration. Having had aft balconies before, the vibration was atypical. Again, not a big deal to us, but may bother some sensitive to motion. Our cabin steward - usual outstanding service and excellent attitude - gave him a you make a difference nomination.

 

DINING: We could only make reservations for two nights out -- which was okay - except for once when we forgot to call the day prior to make the next day reservation -- we then could not get a reservation till late. Not a big deal, just a minor nusiance. The dining room service ranged from poor to excellent. The two nights in the Sterling we got a "hard sell" to purchase wine or drinks from the bar -- the waiters were visably not pleased when we requested water only. One nite the waiter said - are you sure you want to drink the ship's water - you know it is from the ocean and contains chlorine, etc. I can get you bottled water from the bar. Again, not a big deal, just mildly annoying and something I have not experienced on Princess before. In Vivaldi's one evening, we got exceptionally slow service and after a 2.5 hour dinner, we left after waiting over 20 minutes for our desert as we had another commitment. They brought the deserts out to others, but did not bring ours. Unfortunately, it was my fav desert - creme brule -- and I was so sad I did not get to have it. Now, the supurb service -- waiter in the Sante Fe the next night - my husband asked them by chance if they had any creme brule left as I loved it and could not get any the prior evening. This waiter found us two creme brule's and had them prepared for us with sincere apologies that we did not get any the night before. Wow -- now that is the Princess service I have always experienced-- way above and beyond!! Gave Carlos, the waiter, a you made a difference nomination. Horizon Court food was good, the layout is well done as long as people do not mistake the layout for a cafeteria line. We rarely had to wait there and always found a table fast. However, as compared to the grand -- there were few servers offering to help you if you had drinks and a platter and fewer offering to get you drinks. Not a bad thing -- it was good -- just not the outstanding service we experienced on the Grand. Our Room Service was very prompt! However, the room service menu food and the morning danish were not good. We did not try to order off the lunch or dinner menus as we had heard that they now limit that to suite passengers. (I do not know if that is true - but did not try it). Our travel partner was confined to his room for a day as he was not feeling well -- his room service order was forgotten once and wrong twice. Again, not big deals -- just enough to move from excellent to good.

 

SPA: What a wonderful surprise! Loved the spa - got the pass to the relaxation sancutuary and went there every day for the hot stone loungers, the aroma therapy steam rooms and the kewl rainforest showers. Had a massage on a port day and was not asked to purchase one thing after the massage -- the massuse (sp?) was wonderful, it was a great experience. No hard sells as I have read about from others about Steiner. Gave her a huge tip! One day, the woman's locker room smelled overwhelmingly of sewage. Told the ladies at the front desk and they were very appreciative that I told them and called someone to fix it right away. The spa gets high high marks! The Lotus pool is great too -- but very very crowded -- there were a lot of children on this sailing and it appears they did not enforce the adults only in the aft pool -- so lots of adults at the lotus pool -- usually this pool is empty -- which is why I love it - so relaxing.

[mina]

BAR SERVICE: In the casino, we had our own waiter who ran a tab and kept our drinks supplied - he knew our names and loved to chat with us (we are fairly heavy recreational gamblers and we tip well -- more on the casino later). The Pool bar involved another snafu -- my husband ordered me a pina colada and watched the bartender make it -- he only put in a small amount of mix and alcohol and continued to add ice and water to make the drink fill the medium glass. When I tasted it - it was frozen water. I brought it back up to the bar (this was a port day -- only five or six people at the pool in total) The bartender said "oh, yes did not think that would work -- I ran out of mix. Sorry about that" I then asked for a credit to our account -- bartender said -- I have to make you another drink - but we do not have pina colada mix. I said make me strawberry Daquiri -- but you still have to give me a credit as it is cheaper (the drink of the day). It took some time for them to issue me a credit (only for the difference in price of the two drinks) and then the bartender made me wait as he made drinks for the waiter -- took about 30 minutes total to get the new drink and credit. Again, not a big deal -- but subpar for Princess. Would have expected them to give me another drink and to offer to bring it over to me instead of making me stand there. That would have been the level of excellent service that has made me always loyal to Princess. Mistakes happen, just please fix them with panache, as I was not angry or upset -- just amazed at the encounter. The credit of the difference in price may seem petty, but gosh -- he knowingly made me a bad drink and admitted it! Oh well, it was a minor snafu -- overall service was good and in some places, the casino, excellent.

 

CASINO: Loved it -- we bring a set amount to lose each cruise -- this is our recreation and we love the tables and slots. We only had enough $$ each day to let us play for about an hour or so -- well we hit so well we played for hours each day and still only lost our original stake. The quarter video poker - double bonus -- is great - I hit 4 aces at least six times on the cruise ($200 each time). I also hit on a couple quarter slots. The dollar slots were exceptional tight - play quarters -- not the dollars! We did well at the tables and knew all the dealers. It is sad though that many people do not understand it is customary to tip your dealer when you hit well or to tip the attendant if you hit on the slots or they refill the coins for you. The casino staff all knew us by name as we were one of the few couples tipping per usual custom. The attendants told me this cruise was really something as no one was tipping. Keep in mind, these folks make $10 per day! They do not get part of the pre-paid tips. We watched one guy hit at a table for $600 and did not give the dealer anything. Also, it is true - any jackpots of $1500 or more are now reported to the IRS (you have to track your own losses - so I suggest you order casino credits pre-voyage so you have a record for tax purposes, if you are large gamblers.} Also, they do not let you win more than $1500 per day -- you are barred from the casino for the rest of the day. Obviously, this does not impact many people:)

 

A CONTROVERSAL OBSERVATION : On all other Princess cruises, the ship has designated smoking and non-smoking sides outside on the deck (I believe port is smoking side). The diamond did not have any notices in the patter or any distinctions other than ashtrays on the port side of the Promenade Deck and no smoking signs on the tables on the starboard side. There were quite a few people on this trip who smoked -- more smokers than I have seen on other cruises. This did not appear to be a big deal - but we are smokers and like to make sure we are only smoking in designated areas. We were very careful, but it was uncomfortable to go out on deck on port side (where the ashtrays were) and feel that others may not realize that is the guideline as it had not been communicated anywhere. Please do not flame me for this observation or the fact that we are smokers, we are considerate of all rules and guidelines - but there were none posted. They also had two tables inside the atrium Crooners Bar designated as smoking -- right next to non-smoking tables -- I did not like that and we did not use those tables when others were seated in the area.

 

DISEMBARKATION: Very smooth -- this time they let us go with our travel partner for the handicapped exit -- I was somewhat embarrassed that the wheelchairs attendant wheeled us through the lines in front of everyone -- up to imigration. However, they have to do that as they have multiple people they have to get off the boat and only limited attendants (for liability purposes we could not push - the attendant has to be with the wheelchair) - The people waiting in the Imigration Line got verbally abusive with the attendant about moving our travel partner (and us) to the front of the line. I understand being tired and wanting to get out of the line as fast as possible -- but gosh -- thank god that you don't have to be wheeled off -- it is embarrassing enough without having others verbally abuse the attendant. Really, immigration should have a dedicated handicapped line (but then that would slow down everyone else as one line would be continually unavailable). Oh well, that - of course -- has nothing to do with the cruise -- just a sad observation on human nature.

 

So overall, the Diamond was a lovely ship and it was a good cruise. There were a few other minor service snafus like the one's I described above - but I do not want to focus on that -- I did however - want to write a balanced review of the great and the not so great. Overall, we still love Princess and we will sail her again. In this case, the cruise was on par with what we have experienced on the Carnival Spirit- so my adamant devotion to Princess has been dampered a bit. We will try a couple other lines now -- as we are not afraid of risking losing consistently 100% top notch service. However, Princess will continue to be one of our favorites -- just not our only option.

[Julia’s Journey’s]

Thanks for the review, we will be on the ship in 6 weeks and have read the good and bad reviews and hopefully ours will be as good as your cruise was, life has bumps along the way and hopefully we only experience small ones while cruising and those our only ones.:D

[melissa_bel]

Mina,

You won't be flamed I hope. It was an interesting review, thanks and I'm glad you were able to look past the few things that were bad and have a great time.

I'm particularly interested because I am thinking of sailing either the Diamond or the Sapphire.

[Cessna140]

Thanks for taking the time to post such a nice review of your trip for us. We will be sailing in January and have an aft cabin on the Aloha deck, hope the vibration doesn't bother us too much. We are non drinkers in the dining room and always make it clear to our waiter on day one that we will not be purchasing wine or liquor with our meals. So that keeps the wine steward away. Plus we usually have kids with us so that also lets them know that we are not a big drinking table. But pushing to buy bottled water , geez.

I unfortunately have never hit it big in the casino but I definitely will remember to tip my attendant if the bells ever ring for me! I too, loved the quiet pool by the spa, and we frequently used those hot tubs in the evening as they were away from the wind up on deck. We are hoping to use the aft pool quite a bit as it is very close to our cabin. We often sit out there at night as we have tired of the usual cruise entertainment and the necessity of arriving 30 to 45 minutes before the show to get a seat. Half of the time I would be asleep way before the show started. So now we don't go unless it sounds like it is really something that we want to see. We are looking forward to seeing the Piano Man, lots of good reviews from people on Cruise Critic.

Thanks again for the review.

[shawilson]

Nice balanced review. Thank you. What did you do in the ports?

[cruisinfirst]

The review was very helpful. Thank you!

[Lynda90]

Thank you so much for a very honest review. I don't think anyone should fear being flamed when they write a balanced review. While you did mention some things that were not done to your satisfaction, you also mentioned the things that were. I will be on that ship next month and your points will be very helpful. My mom needs a wheelchair during embarkation and disebarkation but not while on the ship. When we were on the same ship last May, I was allowed to go with her and the attendant. They had better let me go with her this time as well. She is elderly and would be extremely upset if I wasn't with her. That was an awful experience you had with the wheelchair situation. The porter who took our bags went and got a chair for my my to sit in while we were in the short security line and he also arranged for wheelchair and attendant. When that was taking too long, he went and actually found someone and brought her to my mom with the wheelchair and it was smooth sailing from there. If it were not for that very compassionate porter, it may not have been such an easy embarkation. I gave him a very big tip to show our heartfelt appreciation.

[Palomino]

Thanks for the balanced review!

Did you try all of the PC restaurants? Which ones did you choose to eat in more than once? Many people put Sterling as their favorite, but it sounds like that is where you had most problems with service.

 

How were your port experiences? How was the tendering in Cabo? Did you do a ship sponsered excursion there?

 

Thanks again for your review!

[mina]

Thanks for the comments folks. I really did enjoy the cruise. Regarding Ports -- we only got off in Cabo and walked around for a little while -- we love port days on the ship cause you have the whole place to yourself and it is like having your own very large private yaht! We have been to Mexico and wanted just a relaxing cruise - so no shore excursions.

 

Regarding dining - I do not think it matters which dining room you eat in for PC dining - you can order from any of the menus in any of the restaurants - we ordered the new york steak from the sterling in several of the dining rooms -- for atmosphere - we liked the sante fe the best - cause we really liked the great waiter we had -- next time we would find a restaurant we liked the waiters we like and stick to it after that -- if you read the menus they have posted in front of the dining rooms - you can then order from any of the specialty ones, if you like.

 

I am sure they will let you board with your mother -- for us there were three of us -- and we were not in the same cabin -- our travel partner had tipped the attendent well and he did take him all the way to his room -- just remember to ask the attendent to find a seat for her before he leaves during embarkation.

[mina]

OOPs -- I forgot to add -- tendering in cabo --- yes Princess' usual outstanding service and process. We went down to the explorer lounge at 8:15 to get a tender -- we did not even sit down -- but went straight through to the tender boats and was on shore in less than 15 minutes. They did a great job on this.

[Cruisin'40]

:) Excellent review, love to hear the goods and bads. It appears people seem to have a problem with the PC dining on the Diamond, maybe they just need to work out the kinks. Am still deciding on Traditional vs. PC for our upcoming cruise.

Did you by any chance catch any of the shows? Am curious how long Princess runs their productions and if the ones on the patter from late Sept. will still be going on in early jan.

Thanks again for the review, the positives and negatives make it realistic and helpful for those of us booked on future cruises.:)

[Suzy Q]

Quick Add On

 

We were on this sailing too. Overall Diamond is beautiful but it is HUGE. If you have any walking or getting around difficulties, plan accordingly.

 

Our sailing had 2930 passengers. Really only a problem during embarkation & disembarkation. Long lines then but no other times.

 

Big plus--there are 29 computer stations in their Internet Cafe. Very nice.

 

Food-- Excellent throughout the ship. From room service to pizza to dining room. Food service people--spotty in International Dining Room but excellent in the Horizon Court.

 

Did seem to be a higher number of kids on this ship than I would have expected for Oct 9.

 

Don't flame me here either. There were definitely more smokers on this ship than usual. Perhaps as the previous poster said, the signage was unclear as they seemed to smoke everywhere. This is just an observation not an indictmant. One place smoking was PERMITTED was immediately outside the International Dining Room. Our table was the first table inside the DR and virtually every dinner we had smoke . The DR doors remain open throughout the meal. I know smokers feel disenfranchised so maybe the doors could close during the meal and they could still have their smoking area? A simple solution?

 

We got conflicting info on the anytime dining as did our table mates. We were told if you make reservations in one of the alternative DRs, you lose your table in traditional dining as there was a waiting list. They ate in PC dining twice (with reservations, not walk ins) and no one took their spot at our table. ???? Never a problem for us, tho, as we couldn't get the times we wanted any way. If you do want a particular venue, make reservations early. In the Internatinal DR, menus from the PC DRs are rotated in addition to the regular menus.

 

Entertainment--Loved Piano Man (music of Billy Joel, Elton John, Barry Manilow etc.) Also loved Tony Tillman--used to open for Bill Cosby in Vegas. He was great. Didn't care for "Undercover".

 

Casino--I won!

 

Can't think of anything else. Don't blast me for the smoling suggestion. Just trying to inform future cruisers. Questions, I'll try to answer.

[spingal]

Mina,

 

Where was your cabin?? My parents were in an aft suite and you might have been their neighbor!!

 

And I agree about the movement in the back -- but in my opinion it was because of the ship's movement and not anything mechanical (some folks had vibrating cabins on the Sapphire and think it is because of the AC on the ship).

 

It is hard to be back home -- isn't it!?!? :(

 

Jamie

[mina]

Jamie -- I think your parents may have been our neighbors - we were on the caribe deck -- our balcony was the one with the lights on at 5 am as DH gets up early and goes out to read every morning. You could be right about the movement - it was just strange as it was a vibration as opposed to the normal swaying -- but like I said - it was great -- had a "majic fingers" bed without having to put in quarters. Yes, it is very hard to be back -- can not bear to unpack - perhaps I will leave my suitcase packed in anticipation of the next cruise.

[spingal]

Mina,

 

They were your neighbors!! They were in C750! How ironic! And I was in C746 - the last inside cabin before the aft cabins. What was your cabin number?

 

I am almost done with my review. The real world stinks!! :(

 

Jamie