March 11th-19th
8 night South Caribbean
Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao
CABIN LIFE: Upon our arrival on board the Caribbean Princess, first mate Laura Anne and I were hit with a blast from the past. The atmosphere inside our mini suite mirrored every bit of the 70’s hit TV show “The Love Boat”. Now, I’m not trying to be picky. But, the whole entire cabin is dated! There is an old and frumpy green couch that just slouches in the corner of the cabin. The carpet totally screams indoor/outdoor 70's bungalow style. Sadly, the bathroom favored a cheap motel that you rent by the hour: from the bath fixture to the floor tile. Not to mention, the stench of urine crowding the toilet with every use. The tub’s tile grout was blackened a bit with a hint of mildew. Which caused an unpleasant shower experience.
Furthermore, our mattress was as stiff as a board and as embracing as a cactus. In addition to my snoring and the condition of our mattress. Laura Anne's quality of sleep was as they say in the Papimento dialect “ Sushi”. To our surprise, the bed comforter had a corner that was torn in what seemed to be in a chewing manner. And in hopes that all the comforters on board hadn't been attacked. I asked our cabin steward, Cosme from the Philippines for an extra one. When he returned, I saw draping from his arms like a wet noddle: Linus Van Pelt's security blanket. I believe this was not his fault, but maybe the custom of the service taught on board. At this point, Laura was sold that we wouldn't be making another run on board the Love Boat.
CUSTOMER SERVICE: Laura and I were very impressed with the energetic customer service, not just by our cabin steward. But, from Aft to Forward... From Port to Starboard. All the staff on board Caribbean Princess were fabulous! Especially, at the Palm Dinning room. Our dining room service was evenly match with the superb quality of food served every night Laura Anne & I attended. Every night we felt welcomed and were embraced by the friendly conversation of our dining room attendants Meg and Radesh from India. And I can't forget Marta from Hungary, who met our every need at the authentic Italian restaurant Sabatini's. I also was impressed with the unhosted Bible Study on the 16th deck. Though I didn't attend, it was comforting to know that Christians were given the opportunity to fellowship on board to study the word of God. Now, that is awesome customer service! Laura and I did experience a little pushiness with the photo packages that were presented to her when it came time to purchase our cruise photos. I get it, the photographer staff member Lili from China was just doing her job. But, when you say no three times to the same offer (just worded differently). It's time to stop with the pressuring sale tactics. Please:)
CHOW: As mentioned earlier, the food on board the Caribbean Princess was phenomenal. In the Palm Dinning room my heart and stomach was won by the Pad Thai. And for dessert, the traditional Cheese Cake would make Puff Daddy get the stepping across the George Washington bridge for it. I also had a great time with Princess' exclusive dessert the "Chocolate Journey", which consists of a chocolate pistachio dome with almond and pistachio nougatine. Once you get to the last bite, you'll stare at it. Dreading the journey coming to the end. Laura and I enjoyed our night at the specialty restaurant, Sabatini's. We savored the Italian flavor of their food. Laura enjoyed the Manicotti alla Sorrentia, consisting od spinach, ricotta & frontina chesse roulade on tomato coulis was delicious. Not to mention, the Petto di Pollo con Asiago e Pomodorini Salsa al Marsala, which is chicken supreme stuffed with eggplant, asiago and sun-dried tomatoes, marsala sauce. As for the buffet eating. the food was cold in temperature
and sadly boring in selection.
and sadly boring in selection.
CRUISER BEWARE:
- Over priced cruise, didn't get a bang for our buck.
- Research how far the beach is from the ship. It might be cheaper to take a cab than a tour through Princess i.e., in Bonaire Spice Beach Tour was $140/ couple. For a cab to the same beach $20
- Bring portable DVD player or lab top. Because Princess has three movie channels and each channel is played on a loop for 24 hours. And these three channels change their movie selections. Still looping the next selection of movies for 24 hours. Also, there is a loop with the network shows.
- The hand towels and bath towels are very rough. While using the towels to wipe sweat from my face. I ended up rubbing skin off the bridge of my nose., which left open scraps.
Cruise Score: 7 KNOTS out of 10 KNOTS
As you were...
