I went on the London (Southampton) to Rome 10-day portion of this 35+ day cruise. The itinerary went on through Dubai, India, to Singapore. Most of the people I met were on for the full cruise. This was my 10th cruise, 9th with Princess, but my first time seeing Europe by cruise. I am 60 years old, live in the Midwest US, and a solo traveler. The ports were the determining factor in choosing this sailing. Realizing that I could have a few days in London on the front end, and make stops at LeHavre (to see Mont St. Michel) and Gibraltar (to see the Barbary Apes) made it an easy decision. Then I also decided as long as I was doing this, I would stay in Rome two days as well at the end.
Obviously I am a Princess fan or I would not be a repeat customer. I had a fabulous time on this trip. The ports were one thrill after another. Although I can be very anxious leading up to a vacation, once the vacation is underway, I like to relax and am not looking for things to pick apart or criticize. I made my air arrangements through Princess to fly non-stop to London Heathrow and also arranged a pre-cruise package at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House Hotel.
The hotel stay was the only disappointing part of the trip. This is an expensive property and based on what I was paying, I expected superlative service, which I did not receive. My room also had several problems that were not remedied. I felt maybe it was because I was a female traveling alone, but it could also have been that I was there the same time as the NFL London football game. The Tennessee Titans staff and cheerleaders were staying there, and I simply wasn't important enough to receive any type of adequate service. I was out exploring London all day during my 3 days there, so I wasn't at the hotel during the times the Princess desk was open, to make a complaint. I did complain to the front desk and I also gave a negative review in the Marriott satisfaction survey. Both resulted in nothing but excuses, double-talk, and an acknowledgement that "my expectations hadn't been met", but not even so much as an apology for that.
Aft mini-suite on Dolphin Deck (Deck 9) I like Princess' mini-suites, as a solo traveler, they are a splurge, and certainly could do fine with a balcony. I really like that the minis have a full bathtub to shower in, versus using the small shower stalls in balcony cabins. The new Princess bed was wonderful. Amazingly comfortable. I had to peek and confirm it was really twin beds joined together as it felt like a regular queen bed. The bedding was also very comfy. Plenty of closet space and I could also fit my luggage into the closet. Since my last cruise in 2016, the TV's have been changed to ones that hang on the wall , which was also nice. There was a very nice selection of in-room movies.
bought cable car ticket online and took that to top of rock to see the apes
Beautiful landscape, cold& rainy, cathedral beautiful, but not enough time to see the Black Madonna