My family (parents and husband) and I recently returned from this cruise (11/19-12/4/2014) and were very happily surprised after reading a few bad reviews about the Grand Princess. Yes, she needs a rehab to the cabins (public areas were rehabbed a few years ago) and you will see rust, etc. but this is still a beautiful ship! We would very gladly take this cruise again on the same ship next year!
Pros:
The crew is genuinely friendly and accommodating. They obviously have great management and leadership, and have many activities that help to keep them happy (we spoke to several crew members about their lives onboard). We loved the Cruise Director, Mike Witte, one of the best we have experienced in 20 cruises.
Our cabin was nicer than we expected, although the bathroom counter and shower curtain left a lot to be desired - very cheesy (especially compared to the Celebrity Silhouette). The balcony was quite large - they took some space from the cabin to enlarge the balconies. The bed linens and towels were very nice and you can request an egg crate and featherbed to soften the otherwise hard mattress which does not have a boxspring.