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There were three areas that were very disappointing to us on this ship. I will refer to these areas shortly; however, let me begin with the positives. The embarkation process was extremely well organized and we were able to board the ship with very little waiting in lines. The personnel providing directions were helpful and made the process go quickly. Once aboard, Princess, had members of the staff stationed in the lobby and at the elevators to direct us which elevator to use to get to our deck. Once at the deck, they also stationed personnel there to advise which way to get to our cabin. Our cabin was a mini-suite and it was truly delightful. The little bit of extra room was well worth the cost (and the cost was comparable with standard balcony cabins on other ships). The bed was comfortable and the cabin had two TV's. Although we were not in the cabin very much, the extra TV was an enhancement since I prefer not to watch TV prior to going to sleep, whereas, my wife in just the opposite. So she was able to watch The TV in the sitting area while I went to sleep in the bed. The cabin had a long, open closet in which we were able to hang our clothes, with a shelf along the whole area for those odd items. It also had a small closet that had doors and there were shelves for more storage. The bathroom, although a little smaller than that on other ships I have been on, contained a full bath tub, which is a plus over the standard shower stall. The balcony was roomy and probably a little larger than the standard balcony.
The amenities provided on the ship were delightful and plentiful. There were numerous lounges to provide a wide variety of entertainment to suit almost every taste. The casino was sufficient in size, although it would be much appreciated if Princess would ban smoking there as they do on most other places on the ship. The restaurants were plentiful with three main dining areas, two for traditional, scheduled dining times and one for "anytime" dining. There is also two specialty restaurants, one a steak house, and the other an Italian restaurant. We ate twice in the steak house and both meals were exceptional, offering a choice of Porterhouse, Prime Rib, 8 or 10 oz. filet, New York strip with bone in and one without bone. We did not frequent the Italian eatery. There are also the standard buffet areas along with the pizza station and the burger, hotdog, grilled chicken station. Somewhat disappointing was the absence of "free" soft ice cream machines. The did have an ice cream station that cost money. The sun and pool areas were sufficient and provided enough deck chairs for everyone.
Our discontent is based upon the following: Although the formal dining areas provided well balanced and very good meals, the buffet areas were fair to poor. The breakfast buffet was OK. It did not offer make to order omelets or fresh made waffles, all were premade. The pastries were OK, not exceptional. The lunch buffets were very disappointing. It seems the chef, or whoever determines the menu, catered to the exotic dishes, more than the plain, normal lunch items. It was impossible to get a deli sandwich, other than the burger, hotdog station mentioned earlier. Some people may prefer an expanded buffet, which is OK, if they also offered the sandwiches for a quick lunch.
Getting around the ship was difficult at times. There are banks of elevators that only go to certain decks and it was very frustrating when you had to go to a different bank of elevators, or go up, or down a deck, in order to get to where you wanted to go. I believe this is due to the way the ship is laid out.
Our greatest disappointment was with the theater, and for us, this will be why we will never cruise this ship again. This ship has room for over 3,000 guests. The theater only seats 800 people. The entertainment was very, very good, if you could get a seat. Most people had to arrive 45 minutes prior to the show in order to get a seat. Then there were those who accepted to stand in the aisles to see the shows. Because there were only two shows each night, this meant that almost half of the guests would not be able to get a seat to see these shows. I do not understand how the builders of this ship could so underestimate this very important part of cruising.
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