 Expert Review |
 | | | | |
| | | | | Overview
When Golden Princess' sister ship Grand Princess first left port in May of 1998, it helped launch the era of mega-ship sailing. Like the Grand, the Golden, a vessel weighing 109,000 tons with a double-occupancy capacity of 2,600 passengers, offers a boat load of possibilities for passengers. We especially liked: Sabatini's, one of the ship's two specialty restaurants, is one of our favorite ocean-going eateries. During the five-course marathon meal, you eat your way through 11 types of antipasto plus some very tasty pasta, pizza and your choice of an entree. This meal is well worth the extra $20-per-person fee. Personal Choice Dining enables passengers to pick either traditional, fixed-seating dinner service at 6:15 p.m. or 8:30 p.m., or to dine anytime between 5:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. A high number of cabins -- 711 out of 935 outsides -- feature balconies. With these you can enjoy moonlit views and sea breezes and also book the Ultimate Balcony Dinner for an extra fee. The teens-only sun deck provides this hard-to-please group an outdoor place to mingle, and the splash pool area (while small) offers parents a tot-friendly place for water play with their pre-schoolers. Three pools ease the swim crunch. The outdoor Calypso Reef draws kids, teens and adults while the covered Neptune Reef provides a climate-controlled space so water enthusiasts can get wet even in inclement weather. The outdoor spa current pool, targeted for swimmers 16 and older, is best at odd hours when it's not filled with kids. With three show lounges -- the Princess Theater, Vista Lounge and Explorers Lounge -- you can find some entertainment no matter what time you finish dinner. A comfortable ship, Golden Princess floats a tasteful decor of beige accented with soft pastels. The only times you feel the crowds are during the popular 8:30 p.m. show in the Princess Theater when latecomers stand in the aisles, and afterwards when passengers stream toward the elevators. With supervised activities in the Fun Zone (a children's area for ages 3 - 7 and 8 - 12), Off Limits (the daytime teen room) and FX (a nighttime disco for ages 13 - 17), Golden Princess works well for families. Interestingly, onboard our 10-day British Isles and Western Europe sailing in July, teenagers significantly outnumbered the younger kids. | | |  top | | | | Dining
We really liked the flexibility of Personal Choice Dining. It gave us the same freedom of land-based nights out. We showed up in the designated dining room whenever we felt like it between 5:30 p.m. and 10 p.m., which freed us from the "hurry up and get dressed for dinner" rush that all too often comes after a long and active day in port. Because of the popularity of Personal Choice Dining, the ship utilizes both the Bernini dining room from 5:30 until 10 p.m. and the Donatello from 6:15 until 10 p.m. If you're willing to meet new people and join a group table, then you may be seated more promptly. But if you desire a solo table during the popular 7:45 to 8:30 p.m. slot, you may wait up to 15 minutes. By arriving around 7 p.m., we were able to finish our meal in time to double up on our evening entertainment, taking in the first show at the Princess Theater at 8:30 p.m. followed by the comedian or singer in the Vista Lounge at 10 p.m. ... with enough time left over to throw away our quarters in the casino's slots. A tip: Reservations for a specific time for any size group, even for a couple, may be made the same day. Traditionalists who like the camaraderie of the same table and service from the same waiter -- the one who knows you like extra lemons with your iced tea -- booked the Canaletto dining room for either 6:15 p.m. or 8:30 p.m. service. Despite seating hundreds of people at once, the dining rooms didn't feel cavernous. Railings divide the rooms into manageable areas and the drapes, carpeting and other measures absorb much of the background noise so that you don't ever have to yell to be heard by your own tablemates. An adequate selection of wines ranging from $20 to $50 per bottle was available. The Horizon Court served ample buffets. Breakfast featured the usual array of hot and cold cereals, smoked salmon, scrambled eggs, omelets, and alternating days of waffles, pancakes and other traditional fare. For lunch, in addition to cold cuts, the spread included a hot fish, chicken or pork dish (often all three), vegetables, greens and sometimes special platters such as sushi. For dinner the Horizon Court also offered a wide variety of hot and cold entrees along with salad and desserts. Room service, although limited to a set menu of breakfast items or sandwiches, salads and burgers, was available 24 hours a day. Along with a Continental breakfast of pastries, coffee and fruit, room service delivered hot items such as eggs, omelets and oatmeal cereal. For people like us who like a hot breakfast but don't want to get dressed to enjoy one, this was a nice touch. Golden Princess offers two specialty restaurants available by reservation only. To be sure you get the time and day you desire, reserve these well in advance. If you like Italian fare, don't miss Sabatini's, well worth the $20 per person extra charge. You select your entree, a soup or salad, and your specialty pizza -- the smoked salmon slice was particularly good -- then the waiter brings you everything else. Start with 11 types of antipasto including melon, sun dried tomatoes, porcini mushrooms in olive oil, steamed black mussels, crab cakes, eggplant, shrimp, fried cheese and marinated artichokes. Make your way through minestrone soup or a seafood cioppino (very tasty) and pizza, followed by three types of pasta. Continue with an entree and end with dessert. By the time we licked the last of the flourless chocolate cake from our forks, we were stuffed and very happy. In contrast, Sterling Steakhouse seemed a bit tepid, but the steaks and, surprisingly, the fish entree, were good. The waiter warned us off the barbecue chicken, saying it's "really for the kids," a tip we appreciated. A singer with a backup band played music, mostly country tunes, and it was fun to watch some couples twirl around the dance floor. The fee for a three-course dinner is $15 per person. Although there's no midnight buffet, food is available all the time. From 11 p.m. until 4 a.m., a section of the Horizon Court morphs into the Bistro, offering waiter service and entrees that include pasta, western omelet, steak, chicken and broiled salmon. The Ultimate Balcony Dinner, little-publicized outside the warm Caribbean, proved to be our favorite shipboard dining experience in 20 years of cruising. Our personal "butler," after draping our balcony table and chairs in yellow linen, began our experience by offering us Champagne and smoked salmon canapes. Then, the ship's photographer snapped our complimentary photo. Next, we dined on our balcony, enjoying the seascape, the swooping gulls and the breezes as our butler served us course by course, discretely positioning himself behind the cabin drapes or out in the hall when not needed. The food was good and bountiful. We started with blue crab in pastry shells, followed by salad, then lobster tails and filet mignon...and for dessert, walnut and vanilla mousse plus chocolates. The meal was both romantic and memorable, and though an indulgence at $100 per couple, well worth the extra splurge. | | | | top | | | | Public Rooms
Part of Golden Princess' charm is its layout, combining ample outside space with inviting indoor lounges, both large and small. With two major show venues -- the main Princess Theater, a two-story space with virtually no obstructed views of the stage, and the secondary Vista Lounge -- plus several smaller lounges and bars, the Golden gives passengers options, thereby mitigating crowding. In the evening at the popular Promenade Bar at the top level of the three-story Grand Plaza atrium, the crowd spilled out into the hallway to listen to the piano tunes and to banter with the pianist. In the late afternoon, a pianist played at the Lobby Bar at the base of the atrium, creating a relaxing spot to sip a glass a wine and listen to music. For smokers, the Players Bar offers cigars and cognac in an intimate space. We especially liked the Promenade Deck's Wheelhouse Bar for its comfortable couches, live oldies band and modestly sized dance floor where even we felt at ease moving to slow rhythms. The bigger Explorers Lounge was the site for trivia games, the art auction, between meals dancing and other entertainment. The moving ramp that takes passengers into Skywalkers enhances the spaceship-like feel of this top deck (Deck 17) disco with the panoramic sea views. The place didn't get busy until after midnight. Each night a deejay spun country, contemporary, Latin or other dance tunes. Open to ages 18 and older, the nightclub only serves alcohol to passengers 21 and older as do the other bars onboard. For deck strollers like us who exercise by taking long walks, the Promenade Deck proved perfect. It's open to passengers almost all the way around, requiring just a short jog up one flight of stairs and then down to complete the circuit. | | | | top | | | | Cabins
Golden Princess has an impressive number of outside cabins with balconies: 711. The balconies are larger on the Caribe and Dolphin Decks than on the Baja Deck. But, from the Baja Deck you can look down and see passengers on their Caribe and Dolphin Deck balconies and from the Caribe Deck you can see those on the Dolphin Deck. So be careful which deck you choose, or what you do. (The couple cuddling in their nighttime attire two decks below us probably forgot we had a good view.) As long as we're on the subject, many of the mid-ship and forward balconies are visible from the bridge, so remember: Unlike on some other ships, you're not as alone on your balcony as you may think. Of 1,301 cabins, 1,096 are standard inside or outside cabins, including the 711 with balconies. Golden also has 22 suites, 180 mini-suites, 1 grand suite and 2 family suites, each of which can sleep up to 10 people (if four are children; otherwise, eight adults can be accommodated). Cabins range in size from 165 to 255 square ft. and suites range from 325 to 800 square ft. Tastefully decorated in beige, cream, muted pink and other soft colors, standard cabins come with televisions, in-room safes, mini-refrigerators, hair dryers, bathrooms with a shower and a desk. Mini-suites add a sitting area with a pull-out sofa and passengers automatically receive bathrobes (however, other passengers can ask for robes; when we asked our room steward he brought them quickly). Dry cleaning services are available for a fee and each passenger deck has self-service, coin-operated washers and dryers. | | | | top | | | | Entertainment
One of the bonuses of being on a big ship is choice, and that includes the entertainment. Our 10-night cruise featured two big shows in the Princess Theater: "Words & Music," songs from Broadway musicals, and "Caribbean Caliente," an elaborately costumed and choreographed production with singers and dancers. It was an enjoyable evening even though it seemed a bit odd to be watching this tribute to the Caribbean while cruising the British Isles. The Vista Lounge hosted "Shake, Rattle & Roll," a golden oldies rock medley, as well as "Country Roads," a mix of country songs. Other nights you could take in a comedy juggler/unicyclist, pianist who sang ballads and rock tunes, and a songstress with an operatic range. We also appreciated the comics. On some European cruises we've been on with other lines, comedians were banned because of the difficulty in translating the jokes into different languages. Perhaps because a vast percentage of the passengers were English speaking, Golden Princess hosted comics. It felt good to laugh at the relationship-themed routines of Kevin Hughes who appeared on two nights. Feature movies from the recent past such as "Finding Neverland" and "Ocean's 12" ran in the afternoon and at midnight in the Princess Theater. The next day you could watch these at selected times in your cabin. Movies Under the Stars (M.U.T.S.), the big-screen outdoor theater that's proven so popular with the line's newest ships, will be installed aboard Golden Princess in April 2009. Passengers can enjoy movies, concerts, sporting events and other special programming throughout the day and evening. Through Princess' ScholarShip@Sea program, lecturers discussed art, diamonds and digital editing. A hands-on mini-course in Photoshop or Microsoft Word cost $25 per course. For wine lovers, the ship staged one tasting for $7.50 per person and a gourmet tasting for $25. In addition, there were trivia contests, art auctions, paint-your-own-ceramics sessions, backstage tours, line dancing classes and, of course, gambling in the casino. | | | | top | | | | Fitness and Recreation
With three pools onboard there was less of a rush to grab a lounge chair than on ships with just one or two pools. Alas, some passengers still insisted on saving a chaise for the afternoon by plunking down a towel and a book in the morning. In warm weather most kids and teens congregated around the outdoor Calypso Reef pool while the glass roofed Neptune Reef pool attracted fewer kids and more adults. But on rainy or chilly days (and you can count on a few of these on a British Isles voyage), the climate-controlled Neptune Reef pool was a nice plus. In addition to these two pools, the spa features a small outdoor current pool. Although targeted for swimmers 16 and older, the pool is often filled with kids and bobbers, making it difficult if not impossible to swim. The spa staff simply shrugged their shoulders, refusing to ask the underage kids to leave the pool. The Lotus Spa offered a range of wraps, massages and treatments, including facials and teeth whitening, done by competent therapists. My husband really enjoyed his hot stone massage. Despite prices higher than one would find in land-based establishments, spa services book up quickly, especially for the popular afternoon hours. Lotus also offered Generation Y Spa services for teens 13 - 17. A parent must be present when the teen tries these facials, scrubs and exfoliation treatments. Parents can join in the relaxation by booking a mother and daughter or father and son side-by-side massage. Unlike on some other ships, Golden Princess doesn't offer a pre- or post-massage relaxation area, only some chairs that ring the often busy treatment check-in desk, and there isn't a thermal sanctuary suite with heated mosaic tile lounge chairs. The small dressing room has three very narrow showers. Incongruously, the sauna and the steam rooms are located on the outside area facing the coed current pool, which made it awkward to sashay over wearing just a towel. The women covered their glass-fronted sauna with a towel, which of course, slipped off every time someone opened the door. Although the aerobics area took up a major portion of the gym, enough treadmills and bikes were available so that waits were minimal. The sea views from the gym made exercising more fun than usual. Golden Princess hosted a variety of free fitness programs, including a walk-a-mile morning wake up, stretch and abdominal classes. Pilates and yoga sessions cost an additional $10 per class. Passengers can also practice at the putting green, and shoot hoops on a half-size basketball court. | | | | top | | | | Family
Although the Fun Zone, the activity area for ages 3 - 12, isn't as large as on later Grand-class ships, the program is the same and well thought out. For most of the day, except for ice cream socials at the Horizon Court and a few other activities, 3- to 7-year-olds spent much of their time in the bright red, blue and yellow room face painting, coloring, making puppets, decorating masks and playing games. The adjacent area for 8- to 12-year-olds has craft tables, games and a plasma television, and leads into an alcove with computers. These kids also created lanyards, played bingo and other games in the Fun Zone, and used the ceramics studio and other shipboard spaces. Children ages 8 and older may, with their parents' permission, sign themselves in and out of the program, a freedom cherished by cruise-savvy kids. When at sea, the free children's program operates from 9 a.m. until noon, 2 until 5 p.m., and 7 until 10 p.m. Reserve ahead for group babysitting, available from 10 p.m. until 1 a.m. for $5 per child, per hour. On port days, the children's program operates from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. and from 7 until 10 p.m., also complimentary. At Off Limits, the teen center located on the other side of the Fun Zone's computer alcove, 13- to 17-year-olds mingled and played ping pong, foosball and cards. Teens also got to know each other during hip-hop dance classes at the aerobics studio, obstacle races on the sports court and dances at FX, the teens-only disco (held in the ceramics studio from 10 p.m. until 1 a.m). Teens can also hang out, sun and soak in their own hot tub on the teens-only deck area. The only problem: The outdoor space is Deck 16 forward while Off Limits is Deck 15 aft, thus preventing teens from easily drifting between their designated indoor and outdoor areas. Deck 16 also has a splash pool that parents can use for young kids. | | | | top | | | | Fellow Passengers
On our July British Isles/Western Europe voyage, Americans accounted for nearly 75 percent of the passengers. Almost 20 percent were British and the remainder were from Italy, the Caribbean and other locales. We saw many multi-generational groups -- parents, kids and grandparents. Interestingly, teenagers significantly outnumbered kids between 3 and 12 years of age. The couples ranged in age from their 30's to their 70's. We noted some singles, but these people generally were traveling with friends. In the Caribbean, Golden Princess attracts a much higher ratio of Americans, as well as families with younger kids. | | | | top | | | | Dress Code
On a 10-day cruise, there were two formal nights and eight smart casual nights. On formal nights, most women wore gowns or cocktail dresses and men wore tuxedos or dark suits. Shorts and t-shirts are not acceptable attire in the dining rooms. Men don't need to wear a jacket or a tie on smart casual evenings though some did. | | | | top | | | | Gratuity
Unless instructed not to, Princess will add a gratuity of $10 per day, per person to your shipboard account. The charge covers your stateroom steward as well as your dining room staff. The majority of passengers appreciate the convenience of this automatic tipping, but if you want to tip on your own in cash, you may do so. --by Candyce H. Stapen, author of National Geographic's Guide to Caribbean Family Vacations. | | | | top | | | | | Expert reviews are provided by CruiseCritic.com, an award-winning cruise community. This objective information can help you choose just the right ship for your next cruise vacation. | |  | |
|
![](http://ctix8.cheaptickets.com/dcswgust510000wo063ly50yw_4l2t/njs.gif?dcsuri=/nojavascript&WT.js=No"){kind=small}