Princess Cruises are one of the world’s leading cruise lines. Now part of Carnival, the largest operator, you can be guaranteed a high level of service, a sense of freedom and great value for money.
Princess offers ‘Personal Choice Dining’, with options of traditional dining (sitting at the same table with the same waiter each time) and ‘your choice’ (where you choose where and when you eat). There are also Horizon Court buffets for casual eating. All dining areas are smoke-free.
Princess pride themselves on the quality and variety of entertainment from solo pianists in the lounges to glitzy and sophisticated productions on stage. There are excellent activity clubs for children.
See our Princess 2008 Late Deals and our Princess 2009 Early Booking Offers.
Berlitz Cruise Review
of Princess Cruises
Ships (in both the Mid-Size and Large categories) operated by Princess Cruises are clean and always well maintained, and the promenade decks of some ships have teak deck lounge chairs (others are plastic).
Princess Cruises also has a nice balance of officers, staff and crew members, and the line’s British connections help it to achieve the feeling of calmness aboard its ships that some other lines don’t have. Choose Princess Cruises if you enjoy being with families and fellow passengers of mid-50s and upwards, who want a well-organized cruise experience with unpretentious middle-of-the-road cuisine, a good range of entertainment, and an excellent shore excursion programme (arguably the best run of any of the 10 major lines).
Princess Cruises has proper cinemas aboard most ships as well as outdoor poolside mega-screens for showing ‘movies under the skies.’
The dress code is either formal (typically one formal night per 7-day cruise), or smart casual (which seems to be translated by many as jeans or tracksuits and trainers).
The onboard product, particularly the food and entertainment, is totally geared to the North American market, however British and other European nationalities should feel at home, as long as they realize that this is all about highly organized, packaged cruising, food and service, with an increasing emphasis on onboard revenue.
There are few staff members on duty at the gangway when you first arrive, and they will merely point you in the direction of your deck, or to the ship’s elevators instead of escorting you to your cabin. An ‘express check-in’ option is available by completing certain documentation 40 days in advance of your cruise.
Decor on Princess cruise ships
If Carnival’s ships have the brightest decor imaginable, the decor aboard Princess Cruises’ ships is almost the opposite – perhaps a little bland in places, with much use of neutral tones, calm colours and pastels. This really does suit the passengers that cruise with Princess, and nothing (we’re talking only about the decor here) is garish or too bright.
Find out more about Princess cuisine and entertainment.
Gratuities (tipping) and currency
Gratuities to staff are added to your account, at $10 per person, per day (gratuities for children are charged at the same rate). If you want to pay less, you’ll need to go to the reception desk to have these charges adjusted (that could mean lining up with many other passengers wanting to do the same). 15% is added to all bar and wine bills. The onboard currency is the US dollar.
Family cruises with Princess
Children are divided into three age groups: Princess Pelicans (ages 2–5), Shockwaves (ages 8–12), and Off Limits (ages 13–17). The groups are split into age-related activities, and Princess Cruises has good children’s counselors and supervised activities.
Best ships for children:
Caribbean Princess, Coral Princess, Crown Princess, Dawn Princess, Diamond Princess, Emerald Princess, Golden Princess, Grand Princess, Island Princess, Sapphire Princess, Sea Princess, Star Princess, Sun Princess
Ships with few facilities for children:
Pacific Princess, Royal Princess, Tahitian Princess
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