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Expect the extraordinary as you step aboard and discover the captivating possibilities, all true to her name
With top deck dining venues, Slice Pizzeria, The Mix, Salty Dog Grill and Coffee & Cones you’ll have even more options to choose from during your stay on board Grand Princess. Relax at The Sanctuary, a tranquil haven reserved for adults, enjoy Movies Under the Stars® poolside or see an award-winning Broadway-style production show in the Princess Theatre, showcasing an even more immersive audio experience.
We returned on 3/23 from this 10-day Mexican Riviera voyage. I give the experience 4 stars mainly due to the generally exemplary service, most especially in our suite, restaurants and the Sanctuary. That being said, Grand Princess is definitely showing her age... and we are not sure if the Princess brand is one we will patronize again... 3/13/25 Boarding day was semi-chaotic. We arrived around 10:30 a.m. but no one was allowed to start entering the terminal area until 11:00 a.m. We were initially misdirected to a general boarding area, but as we had suite priority, we asked & were redirected to a different waiting area & boarded after Elite passengers. We entered at the Piazza level on Deck 5 which had a small band playing extremely loud music. Lots of staff around selling various things like beverage packages and wine tasting along with the shops staff approaching you about myriad shopping "opportunities." This is just Princess, so no huge surprise. I'm also not a fan of 80's & 90's pop music piped in everywhere including the passenger corridors all day & into the night. Not terribly loud, but couldn't they start a bit later in the morning & end earlier in the evening? Note: on disembarkation day, some inept staffer pushed the wrong button and we were treated to 80's pop for several minutes starting at 5:45 a.m.! Yeah! Not. We tried the Botticelli Dining Room for lunch; it was completely slammed. Not wanting to deal with the Horizon Court on embarkation day, we ended up having sandwiches at the International Cafe. They were very good & service was quick & friendly. Afterwards, we found our way to our accommodations & happily, our luggage was waiting for us. Our suite was nicely appointed inside with a small sitting area & curtained-off bedroom with the bathroom kind of shoehorned in the middle. The bathroom had a huge tub plus separate shower. Pretty nice. The balcony is another story... I ventured onto the balcony & immediately noticed paint drips on the floor & the table. The chair cushions were filthy, and the lounger cushions were not in much better shape. The partitions between us & the next cabin also had drip stains & a rusted section of floor. It's hard to believe Princess would allow this to happen. Our kind & considerate steward, Emmanuel, gave us extra towels to put on the chairs & loungers so we could actually sit outside. Ports on this trip were Cabo (went whale watching which was fun! "Party Cabo" looks seedy especially in the morning), La Paz (pretty nice - did a food tour which we liked, Loreto (my absolute favorite! - charming & relaxed), and Puerto Vallarta (just walked around & had lunch at a great place called Coco's Kitchen. A very busy place!). We attended some enrichment activities that we found quite enjoyable, including historical lectures by Steve Schecter on Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, & Abraham Lincoln. He was informative & friendly, but it was unfortunate that his slots were at 9 a.m. & were not especially well-attended. The naturalist, Samantha Olson, was also excellent, presenting on Cetaceans, Sea Turtles & Sea Jellies, among others. We greatly enjoyed our time in the Sanctuary, knowing that it is an extra charge & being willing to pay for the peace & quiet. The attendants there were very friendly & responsive. We are especially fond of taking afternoon tea up there. Highly recommend! They will give you blankets or extra towels if it's cold. The food on board was pretty good or better at the main dining room we used, DaVinci and at the specialty restaurants, especially Sabatini's. The staff there was superlative. In our opinion, the Crown Grill was not as good. The Horizon Court served its purpose but was not memorable, nor did we expect it to be. I would rank the Lido Deck pizza station higher than the Salty Dog. A final comment on the Princess Patter and its listed activities... As mentioned above, we were big fans of the enrichment-related events. Sadly, these were much fewer in number than the sale "event's." Whether it was the Effy store, the watch store, the cosmetics store or clothing store, there were innumerable "chances" to win! Or shop! Or both! And let us not forget the art auction events & "seminars." We did not attend any of these as we consider the offered pieces to be of subpar quality. Thomas Kinkade? We peeked in to the Explorers Lounge ahead of one such event, and confirmed our feelings about the art. Don't buy it unless you've researched carefully... I would make the same recommendation concerning spa services. They offer port day specials, yet are still very expensive & staff are notorious for upselling more products. Just be prepared. All in all, I know there's a lot of negative commentary here. I simply believe in being honest & have stated that this is just my opinion. Princess still does many things well - again, the food, the service, etc. I was told the Grand is heading to a 3 week dry dock in Portland after its current voyage. It is my feeling this may not be enough time to address what needs to be done. Others on board echoed our feelings...
Had a great cruise! Found the same excellent level of service from Princess I have enjoyed, despite my last sailing being in Aug 2019. Yes the Grand is older, I encountered no issues with HVAC, plumbing, smells or flooding, she is still a beautiful vessel who will take you great places! We were gifted the best weather in Glacier Bay - where we saw 2 bears on the coast! And Ketchikan! I found the food plentiful in choice, and cooked extremely well. Loved dinners in the Main Dining Room, the International Cafe had my favourite breakfast the smoked salmon sandwich. The buffet had some great choices. Alfredo’s and the Salty Dog Gastro Pub pop up we’re both highlight meals for me! I love the pre and post cruise transfers to/from the airport and the service Princess offers. Cruise of a lifetime for me seeing bears, whales, porpoises, otters, eagles and the Northern Lights! I wrote a full review with pictures from my trip on the Princess boards.
First time on Grand Princess and we really enjoyed the smaller size and more classic feel. The full outside promenade is something I have missed on newer shops. The Grand didn’t feel crowded. Lots of cozy spaces. Plenty of pools and hot tubs. We had aft corner and loved it. Quiet, and a great balcony with views to both back and side. Our room attendant was also excellent. The beds were super comfortable. The cruise director was the best ever… making the game shows and hosted events so much fun. Our favorite relaxing bar was the Wheelhouse with jazz on most evenings. Overall, the service was very good and the vibe relaxed. (Happy to feel less sales pressure on the ship than in the past.) The food however wasn’t that great. We ate breakfast in the buffet (pancakes hard as rocks), and dinner in the dining room - where much of the food was pretty bland. Pizza was actually bad. Overall, not as good as past cruises on Princess. (We did enjoy the ice cream though!) Overall - we liked Grand Princess quite a bit and wouldn’t hesitate to book another trip on her. Just hope they don’t forget to make really good food for all the guests… not just those eating in specialty restaurants.
We are in our early 50's, have done about 10 cruises. We have sailed mainly with Holland America and Celebrity. Staff were amazing on this ship, they went above and beyond when needed and it made a difference for us. The ship is old and has problems. Our AC in our room wasn't working, it was about 78 degrees in the room on the day of embarkation. We called the front desk and they said they would let the repair person know. I wrote a note for our room steward and we went off to dinner. Upon return to our stateroom, the AC was working! Our room steward let us know he had called the repair team our behalf. We had the premier package and that saved the day as far as the rest of the story goes. We ate in the specialty dining rooms each night with my parents and had a great time talking for a couple hours over dinner each night. The food and service was very good in the specialty restaurants. We booked the specialty restaurants a couple months before the cruise and I'm really glad we did. This trip was a memorable time for us, we played card games with my folks, ate most meals together, went to comedy and music shows, played at the casino, and went to a game show. All 4 of us had fun every day. My folks had a mini suite and had zero issues with their room. We were in L304, a room with a floor to ceiling window. I was the only one in our group that had issues with the ship, I seem to have a knack for finding toilets that wouldn't flush and other less than impressive things. Our cruise was an unusual itinerary. We had only one port day, in Ketchikan. We had rough seas on our way out to Ketchikan. I think the ship handled the weather well, none of us got seasick. Some people did. The throw up bags were hung throughout the ship, and they were used by some :( We saw some things on this trip, let me tell you. We rented a car in Ketchikan and took my folks on an excursion. We went both directions until we hit dirt road, we saw "all the things" on the main road that goes north and south of Ketchikan. It was really a wonderful day, about 5 hours of adventuring and my folks could see a lot of the attractions right from the car. We saw waterfalls, amazing park beaches, Totem Bight State Park, and a bunch of other places. We used Alaska Car Rental, on Tongass Avenue. They were easy to work with and there were no billing shenanigans. It cost about $120 for the day car rental. If you decide to use this company, be careful to select this location near downtown Ketchikan. There are two locations near Ketchikan, and the other one is a ferry ride away from the port the cruise ship is at. You want the one on Tongass Ave. it cost us $10 for a taxi to the car rental place and it was a mile walk back for us at the end of the day. We were able to park right at the ship to drop off my folks off at the ship before returning the car, it was really nice and easy. Disembarkation was also easy. We intentionally got assigned to one of the last groups off the ship and it was a breeze to find our luggage as there were just a few bags to sort through. We all met up at 8:00 in the buffet area and had a relaxing breakfast while waiting until 9:15 to head down to the gangway. Easy. All in all, this was a super special trip and I think the great staff made up for the older ship issues. For what we paid, I think the value was excellent for this trip.
I wondered whether this old ship would be worn out but she was in great shape except for some outdoor signs of age. We were on her in 1999 and she has been updated a great deal, including losing the "shopping cart handle" nightclub affecting her stability. Too bad, as that is a great viewing area that other ships in the Grand class still have. This was a fabulous 17 day cruise covering most of the Alaska cruise ports and places to view glaciers. We embarked in Seattle and for the first time in 46 cruises there were no porters there to take your tagged luggage when you got off the bus, taxi etc. We had to get our own luggage all the way to the very long line waiting to turn it over at the screening area. A very nice fellow passenger helped me with mine, as I had a walker and 3 other small pieces to manage as well. It was a long wait in line too. I don't know why there were no porters or luggage help but that was a negative start to the cruise. There were no assigned boarding times, something new for me but I think most folks ignored those times anyway, so it still seemed to work fine for passenger flow. Check-in was quick. I do wish all cruise lines would give you your muster station name and location on check-in. Days later I figured out where to find it on the app but had to ask crew on boarding day. Speaking of the app, it works very well and I used it a lot to look at deck plans, check upcoming events, look at shore excursions etc. I traveled solo, and of course Princess does not give any kind of price break to singles. They make up for it in other ways, such as great service and entertainment. I had balcony cabin in the aft section on deck 11. The Grand class cabins are smaller than those on more modern ships. At 232 square feet (including balcony) my cabin was great for one person but would have been cramped for two. There was no couch and only the desk chair to sit on. There was a small, round glass-topped table which worked fine for room service meals for one person. Storage was adequate. The bathroom was small. There was a shower curtain, but the cloth-like material they used did not stick to me and did not bother me. The bed was extremely comfortable. The balcony had the blue matting which I dislike for the way it feels on bare feet. I much prefer teak balcony decks, but these are not found on Princess. There were 3 USB and 2 A/C slots so plenty of ways to charge our stuff. The only irritant was the daily announcements in the cabin hallways. There are other ways to provide that information. The only exception would be disembarkation day, when I can see the need for annoucements everywhere on the ship. There were plenty of activities for all ages. We did have a few children on board but they did not cause an issue. The service was great. All staff smiled and greeted you in passing. I use a walker and was often assisted by the crew without my asking. I have mixed feelings about the Medallion. It worked fine for opening my cabin door, telling crew where to find me, ordering room service, checking on and off the ship. However, when ordering drinks they were delivered timely half the time, once never, and once the drink was inexplicably set at the opposite end of the bar from where I was sitting in a lounge chair, and left there. After a few days I gave up on ordering beverages using the Medallion and relied on the great bar staff. Officers were very visible and friendly. The ship itself was spotless and all upholstery and furnishings were in great condition. There are 3 dining choices: reserved daily time, flexible reservations, and walk-in. I used the latter and had no problem getting a table when I showed up. The food varied from ok to great and the service was usually quick, but not always. I loved the four production shows. The rest of the entertainment varied from great (Elton John tribute) to what-the-heck? (hypnosis demo). Since this was a longer than usual Alaska cruise I imagine they had to scramble a bit for enough entertainers. One inconvenience for those of us with walkers and wheelchairs is that the only way to enter the main theater floor was up some stairs, so we were limited to the upper floor on deck 7, at the very back. There were also not enough spaces for all the walker and wheelchair users. The shore excursions I took were all great. There are many options on Alaska cruises. The only glitches were at Seward and Wrangell, neither of which are usual Princess ports. At Seward the buses were all right beside the door leading out of the port building so everyone crowded up right there with no signs or Princess staff to tell them where to go. They had one shore excursion rep there but needed 3 or 4 to direct traffic and establish lines. It was a mess with a lot of pushing and shoving and confusion. At Wrangell there was no Princess rep at first and 4 passengers with tour tickets were told there was no room for them on our bus. This resulted in a 15 minute delay while the tour company owner, bus driver and guide discussed this problem beside our bus. Finally a Princess rep appeared and by giving up the guide's seat and getting two passengers to move seats, enough room was found for the four. I took a mixture of boat and bus tours and had no problems getting my walker on board and off. Icy Strait Point was a favorite for the gondola trip (I went twice to enjoy the great views)as were Haines and Wrangell and Victoria. Disembarkation was only 10 minutes behind scheduled times and efficiently done considering getting 2600 passengers off the ship in a timely manner. Passport control was quick and we didn't have to wait too terribly long for the bus to the airport. Overall I had the usual great Princess cruise (this is my 16th on Princess). The itinerary was fabulous and we were so lucky to have great weather except for the first two days. We got great views of Hubbard Glacier, Harvard Glacier in College Fjord, and Margerie Glacier in Glacier Bay. I also visited Mendenhall Glacier and the wonderful Aialik Glacier in Aialik Bay near Seward and many other glaciers along the way. This was my 6th cruise to Alaska (one Celebrity, one the old Royal cruise line, two HAL, two Princess) and definitely the best.
We returned on 3/23 from this 10-day Mexican Riviera voyage. I give the experience 4 stars mainly due to the generally exemplary service, most especially in our suite, restaurants and the Sanctuary. That being said, Grand Princess is definitely showing her age... and we are not sure if the Princess brand is one we will patronize again... 3/13/25 Boarding day was semi-chaotic. We arrived around 10:30 a.m. but no one was allowed to start entering the terminal area until 11:00 a.m. We were initially misdirected to a general boarding area, but as we had suite priority, we asked & were redirected to a different waiting area & boarded after Elite passengers. We entered at the Piazza level on Deck 5 which had a small band playing extremely loud music. Lots of staff around selling various things like beverage packages and wine tasting along with the shops staff approaching you about myriad shopping "opportunities." This is just Princess, so no huge surprise. I'm also not a fan of 80's & 90's pop music piped in everywhere including the passenger corridors all day & into the night. Not terribly loud, but couldn't they start a bit later in the morning & end earlier in the evening? Note: on disembarkation day, some inept staffer pushed the wrong button and we were treated to 80's pop for several minutes starting at 5:45 a.m.! Yeah! Not. We tried the Botticelli Dining Room for lunch; it was completely slammed. Not wanting to deal with the Horizon Court on embarkation day, we ended up having sandwiches at the International Cafe. They were very good & service was quick & friendly. Afterwards, we found our way to our accommodations & happily, our luggage was waiting for us. Our suite was nicely appointed inside with a small sitting area & curtained-off bedroom with the bathroom kind of shoehorned in the middle. The bathroom had a huge tub plus separate shower. Pretty nice. The balcony is another story... I ventured onto the balcony & immediately noticed paint drips on the floor & the table. The chair cushions were filthy, and the lounger cushions were not in much better shape. The partitions between us & the next cabin also had drip stains & a rusted section of floor. It's hard to believe Princess would allow this to happen. Our kind & considerate steward, Emmanuel, gave us extra towels to put on the chairs & loungers so we could actually sit outside. Ports on this trip were Cabo (went whale watching which was fun! "Party Cabo" looks seedy especially in the morning), La Paz (pretty nice - did a food tour which we liked, Loreto (my absolute favorite! - charming & relaxed), and Puerto Vallarta (just walked around & had lunch at a great place called Coco's Kitchen. A very busy place!). We attended some enrichment activities that we found quite enjoyable, including historical lectures by Steve Schecter on Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, & Abraham Lincoln. He was informative & friendly, but it was unfortunate that his slots were at 9 a.m. & were not especially well-attended. The naturalist, Samantha Olson, was also excellent, presenting on Cetaceans, Sea Turtles & Sea Jellies, among others. We greatly enjoyed our time in the Sanctuary, knowing that it is an extra charge & being willing to pay for the peace & quiet. The attendants there were very friendly & responsive. We are especially fond of taking afternoon tea up there. Highly recommend! They will give you blankets or extra towels if it's cold. The food on board was pretty good or better at the main dining room we used, DaVinci and at the specialty restaurants, especially Sabatini's. The staff there was superlative. In our opinion, the Crown Grill was not as good. The Horizon Court served its purpose but was not memorable, nor did we expect it to be. I would rank the Lido Deck pizza station higher than the Salty Dog. A final comment on the Princess Patter and its listed activities... As mentioned above, we were big fans of the enrichment-related events. Sadly, these were much fewer in number than the sale "event's." Whether it was the Effy store, the watch store, the cosmetics store or clothing store, there were innumerable "chances" to win! Or shop! Or both! And let us not forget the art auction events & "seminars." We did not attend any of these as we consider the offered pieces to be of subpar quality. Thomas Kinkade? We peeked in to the Explorers Lounge ahead of one such event, and confirmed our feelings about the art. Don't buy it unless you've researched carefully... I would make the same recommendation concerning spa services. They offer port day specials, yet are still very expensive & staff are notorious for upselling more products. Just be prepared. All in all, I know there's a lot of negative commentary here. I simply believe in being honest & have stated that this is just my opinion. Princess still does many things well - again, the food, the service, etc. I was told the Grand is heading to a 3 week dry dock in Portland after its current voyage. It is my feeling this may not be enough time to address what needs to be done. Others on board echoed our feelings...
Had a great cruise! Found the same excellent level of service from Princess I have enjoyed, despite my last sailing being in Aug 2019. Yes the Grand is older, I encountered no issues with HVAC, plumbing, smells or flooding, she is still a beautiful vessel who will take you great places! We were gifted the best weather in Glacier Bay - where we saw 2 bears on the coast! And Ketchikan! I found the food plentiful in choice, and cooked extremely well. Loved dinners in the Main Dining Room, the International Cafe had my favourite breakfast the smoked salmon sandwich. The buffet had some great choices. Alfredo’s and the Salty Dog Gastro Pub pop up we’re both highlight meals for me! I love the pre and post cruise transfers to/from the airport and the service Princess offers. Cruise of a lifetime for me seeing bears, whales, porpoises, otters, eagles and the Northern Lights! I wrote a full review with pictures from my trip on the Princess boards.
From the moment you step aboard, we want you to feel welcomed and right at home. And with attentive service from a friendly staff that knows what hospitality means, you’ll find your Princess® ship truly is your home away from home.
Photos, floor plan diagrams, amenities, and furnishings represent typical arrangements and may vary by ship and stateroom.
Indulge your appetite whenever you wish on board Princess®. Every hour, our chefs are busy baking, grilling and sautéing great-tasting fare from scratch. Princess offers unparalleled inclusive dining options throughout the ship with a wide range of culinary delights to suit any palate, from endless buffet choice to gourmet pizza, frosty treats, decadent desserts and much more.
Speciality Dining
Dining on board a Princess® cruise ship is a joyful celebration and our speciality restaurants always deliver an extraordinary experience. They are among the best at sea – or anywhere. We serve dishes made with the freshest ingredients, and our menus reflect regional flavours from around the world. You'll find our speciality restaurants are the perfect place to celebrate any occasion.
From relaxing pursuits and enriching activities to world-class entertainment and gourmet cuisine, when you step aboard, you are setting a course for a world of wonderful new discoveries.
A wealth of diversions for nearly every interest – and mood
On every Princess ship, you'll find so many ways to play, day or night. Explore The Shops of Princess, celebrate cultures at our Festivals of the World or learn a new talent — our onboard activities will keep you engaged every moment of your cruise vacation.
Original musicals, dazzling magic shows, feature films, top comedians and nightclubs that get your feet movin’ and groovin’. There’s something happening around every corner; luckily, you have a whole cruise of days and nights to experience it all.
The many activities on-board our ships are designed to stimulate, educate, entertain, inspire and sweat - not necessarily in that order. But, guests can be sure crew onboard will do their best to cover all the bases. From art auctions to The Sanctuary Spa, this ship is loaded with fun things to do.
From family-friendly stateroom options to enriching youth and family programmes, quality time is time well spent. Onboard activities spark curiosity and fuel creativity while excursions ashore engage and inspire!
