Caribbean princess: largest "love boat" in Princess Cruises' Grand Class is specially built for Caribbean cruising

Cruise Travel, May-June, 2005 by Theodore W. Scull

Balconied staterooms comprise 881 of the 1,557 cabins onboard, with the lower ones tiered outward so those above can look down on others below; at the higher elevations, this is not the case. All cabins have twin beds that can be made into queen-size, multi-function telephones, refrigerators, safes, hair-dryers, and remote-control TV with CNN, TNT, CNBC, Discovery Channel, movies, special-interest lectures, and interviews. Categories from mini-suites up have tub baths, robes, two TVs, and a separate sitting area with a sofa bed.

In our case, the Filipino steward was excellent and invariably had our room made up while we were at breakfast, as long as we remembered to hang the sign on the door. We had breakfast on the balcony just once on a port day with an early excursion, and it arrived in the middle of the 7:30 to 8 a.m. period we ticked on the card. Soundproofing between rooms was good, but not much can be done with noisy balcony neighbors or those who leave their balcony lights on all night. We like to keep our door open to hear the lulling sounds of the sea, and usually by midnight or so, quiet reigned and this was possible.

On our cruise, Princess Cays was temporarily out of action due to hurricane damage from last year's unusually nasty series of tropical storms (see Cruise Views, page 58). Instead, we called at San Juan from the late afternoon to 11 p.m., allowing about two hours of daylight to wander through Old San Juan plus time to stay ashore for dinner. A huge choice of excursions presented themselves at both St. Thomas, where we chose the very well-operated Atlantis Submarine excursion, and St. Maarten, where we enjoyed the two-flags tour taking in the Dutch and French sides of this isle with the dual nationalities.

As we like the sea days, this trip was an ideal balance between ample time onboard and short forays ashore. For a bustling atmosphere, there are plenty of activities and entertainment from which to choose for the three sea days, along with good varied dining venues. Quiet retreats also allow you to withdraw from the mainstream. The Caribbean Princess knows her market--one most efficiently catered to by her staff.

MS CARIBBEAN PRINCESS FACTS & FIGURES

Company: Princess Cruises.

Built: 2004, Fincantieri Cantieri Navali Italiani, Monfalcone, Italy.

Country Of Registry: Bermuda.

Gross Registered Tonnage: 112,894.

Length: 951 ft. Beam: 118 ft. (159 ft., including bridge wings). Draft: 26 ft.

Speed: 21.5 knots cruising (22.5 knots maximum).

Propulsion: Two fixed-pitch propellers, each driven by a Siemens electric propulsion motor of 19 megawatts maximum output. Propulsion and ship's service power from six Siemens generators (four of 11,520 kilowatts, two of 8,640 kilowatts), driven by Wartsila ZA40S diesel engines (four V-16, two V-12).

Passenger Capacity: 3,114 (double occupancy); 3,796 (including additional berths).

Passenger Space Ratio: 36.3.

Normal Crew Size: 1,200.

Nationality Of Crew: Italian/international officers; international crew.

Staterooms: 1,557 cabins on eight decks, of which 1,105 are oceanview (and of those, 881 have private balconies) and 452 are inside; comprising 25 suites with private balconies (square footage, 461-1,279"), two family suites with interconnecting cabins (square footage, 607"), 180 mini-suites with private balconies (square footage, 324"), 674 balcony cabins (square footage, 233-285"), 224 oceanview cabins (square footage, 158-182), 452 inside cabins (square footage, 163)--(*square footage includes balcony).