Reviews
![2022-08-09 11:58:17]()
There was a lot that we liked about our cruise but we did have some gripes that mean we have booked our next cruise with another line.
The food has degraded since we last sailed with them.
Who writes the menus for Princess in their main dining rooms? Weird combinations of strange food seem to be the choice on every menu. Not natural to a British pallet. And what about the sausages in both the self service (always raw) and the main dining rooms tasted of poorly cooked stewed cardboard. When challenged the team explained that they were steamed, we like them fried or grilled, I don’t think there were any Germans on the ship and they weren’t German sausages.
The main dining rooms (although booked as soon as available on the app before embarkation for the same table same time) had us sitting in a different seat every meal and it wasn’t worth asking on the app for the near a window option as they stuck us in the middle all the time. The last straw was when the computer deleted our booking three days before the end of the cruise and could not be reinstated. We took to the self service instead!
The 4 excursions we pre booked were disappointing at best. The organisation from the ship was okay but once on the trip the content, organisation and lack of toilet facilities did not represent good value. The best trip that I took was by buying a sightseeing bus ticket which included a funicular railway ride in Livorno which cost me about £10, the cafe in the square at the top of the railway was a pleasure to sit outside and marvellous views as well.
The embarkation did involve a long wait once booked-in although we were one of the first at the terminal. Princess like to load their VIP and disabled (wheelchair) passengers and kept us seated for about 45 minutes past our booked time.
Reviews
![2022-08-06 15:40:52]()
A great cruise, pleasantly surprised by the hot weather and the lovely ship. Staff were very good and the drinks package was great, with good choice of drinks. Princess ships are really well looked after and we could not find anything to complain about.
Reviews
![2022-08-05 20:37:25]()
This cruise was short break, 6 days to Europe. Very good overall but the ship was larger than I would normally choose.
The entertainment on board was spectacular and the entertainment team were very professional and great fun.
Reviews
![2022-08-05 08:58:43]()
We did not like the medallion app.
The ship did not have a proper promenade deck to walk around, the public rooms were jumbled.
The overall cruise was good.
Reviews
![2022-08-04 20:49:37]()
Had a fantastic time , beautiful ship , great accommodation , well looked after by the all the crew , and the entertainment was first class , loved every minute . Best holiday I have had in years , thank you Princess cruises .
Reviews
![2022-08-04 20:04:55]()
Price included complimentary Premium drinks package, free WiFi and Staff gratuities. Not being great drinkers, and never bought a drinks package before, we were never going to use all the drinks allowance, but it was refreshing not to have a bill to settle at the finish of the cruise. Entertainment was not the best we have experienced, but "each to their own taste". Being only 60% occupancy made the cruise very comfortable and hardly had to queue anywhere. Staff were great always smiling and friendly and the new ship was beautiful. Shame the cruise ended with us having caught Covid, but this was always going to be a possibility.
Reviews
![2022-08-04 18:15:46]()
Excellent cruise, the crew/staff were very attentive, nothing was too much trouble. The buffet was very good and the evening dining was excellent with a wide variety of choice. There was plenty of seating areas to suit any preference for either quiet or a bit more busy with entertainment. The theatre productions were first class. This was our first cruise but we enjoyed it so much we have booked two more for next year.
Reviews
![2022-08-04 17:04:22]()
This was a Katherine Jenkins/Aled Jones/Collabro cruise. KJ and Collabro were great but Aled Jones left a lot to be desired.
The house band were very good.
The ship missed out Guernsey because of 'adverse weather conditions' but if you Google cruises to Guernsey you find that this happens all too regularly.
We missed out on Bordeaux because it was 40 miles away and the only way to get there was on an expensive cruise excursion.
The food in the Crown Grill was superb although the choice of sides was limited.
We liked the fact that our 'Medallion' opened our stateroom door remotely but using it to order drinks was a bit hit and miss.
We are no spring chickens ourselves but we have never been on such an 'old peoples cruise' - the demographic was positively geriatric. We won't be cruising out of Southampton on a 'no fly' cruise again.
Reviews
![2022-07-13 17:29:44]()
Great cruise, staff fantastic, can’t do enough to help you. Lovely ship in very nice condition Shore tours too expensive and drinks very expensive if you didn’t have a drinks package. Very good itinerary - We enjoyed visiting the places in Norway and Denmark.
Reviews
![2022-07-12 17:30:25]()
Great fortnight as ship was only at 60% capacity and nowhere seemed overcrowded. Downside was we returned with Covid. Must have picked it up aboard as we were aware there were passengers affected.
Reviews
![2022-07-09 20:30:46]()
Reviews
![2022-07-05 13:29:09]()
The pre-embarkation formalities re Covid tets, the almost obligatory Medallion Class apps on Smartphones were so onerous that we nearly cancelled2 weeks before sailing! But we DID enjoy the cruise itself, despite the very mixed weather with rain, low temperatures, and high winds preventing us landing at Guernsey, which was VERY disappointing as we had arranged to meet friends there. (Le Havrs wasa poor substitute ).
Bilbao was even better than I had hoped, but it was cut short by a 3.30p.m. sailing. So we hope to return one day to explore properly.
The evening entertainment was even better than usual , with the 3 main ticketed shows delightig the audience, especially Katherine Jenkins, who really WOWED us!! Full marks to Imagine Cruising for arranging the performances and ticketing so well.
Sadly, the Rail Strike made the disembarkation a nightmare as the few taxis could not cope with the demands of people needing to get to the rail and coach stations. However this was not Princess Cruises' fault, and a sensible Security Officer radio=ed the Taxi HQ for help, and the response was immediate.
Reviews
![2022-07-04 18:11:26]()
What a fantastic ship; from the moment we stepped on board until we left it was truly amazing, all so clean, the staff were perfect, we could not fault this holiday, already booked another cruise
Reviews
![2022-07-04 09:31:42]()
Reviews
![2022-07-03 17:27:50]()
Was away with my mum and sister for my mums 80th birthday. From start to finish the experience was fantastic. The service and attention to detail was second to none. It was my mum and sister's first cruise experience and I'm sure will not be their last. We all had an amazing time onboard and I the ports we visited.
Reviews
![2022-07-03 13:40:44]()
We sailed from Southampton. Firstly can I just get out of the way the low score for Shore Excursions, same as any cruise tours, I find them very expensive.
Embarkation wasn't the best when having to queue to park your car, then pulling your suitcases to the port and queue again, then queue again inside the port to check in. We found sailing from the Mayflower is more organised. Disembarkation was running 30-45 minutes late, but the staff organised this very well.
I would give everything else 5*. The ship was amazing, the staff were so friendly and nothing was too much trouble. The ports of call were to our liking even though we had been to all but 1 of them before.
Our stateroom was D307 it was very cosy and clean. We had concerns about the size of the balcony before we sailed, but it was adequate for us, and we even enjoyed breakfast on the balcony.
The food onboard is very good, the only thing we could pick at with the food was not having a steak on the classic daily menu like the other cruises we have been on. Talking of steak, we had amazing steaks in the Crown Grill. Our waiting staff in the dining room were extremely nice and helpful with the menus. We spent a lot of the time at the Ocean Terrace, Sushi bar, that was great, the fish was so fresh, excellent.
The entertainment on the ship was great. The bars were very good with friendly staff.
We would go back on this ship without hesitation.
