Princess Cruises Reviews

We have been on many cruises and just returned from the Fjords on the Sky Princess. I have to say although the Fjords were amazing the standard of service offered by Princess was way below the standard offered by other cruise companies and by Princess a few years ago. It was taking up to an hour to get drinks, this wasnt down to inefficiency of the staff but the lack of staff. We would order by the App, a staff member and finally by waiting for at least half an hour at a bar. This was also the same in the buffet food area where it would take an age to get a coffee/tea, the staff seemed to avoid eye contact but i’m sure this is due to them being rushed off their feet as they were short staffed. I never received a hot cappucinno unless i went to deck 5 to the International Cafe but the food was fine and plenty of choice. The service in the restaurants was also slow, taking us two hours to have our meal. We found The Soleil provided the best service. The food was fabulous. Seating was an absolute nightmare, there were 4 in our party and it was impossible to get seating together in any of the venues we wanted to attend for entertainment. When we did eventually find a seat we wouldnt leave, knowing we wouldnt manage to get another one. There was not one night where we were able to sit somewhere of our choosing. The ship is catering for too many people without offering them the leisure areas. On the penultimate day I was so frustrated I needed to address it with Customer Services, i had the unfortunate pleasure of meeting Katianna from Ukraine who seemed very insulted that I should even go to the desk to raise this issue. Although I addressed her in a calm manner she was very rude and just shrugged her shoulders at me asking me what i expected her to do about my seating problem! We know this was a major problem for many people on the ship. We are so disappointed with Princess that we have to decided NOT to do the New Zealand cruise with them which was planned next year or any other cruises with them for the foreseable future. We expect a far better service and not just a Taxi service from one location to another. We usually see senior officers walking around engaging with passengers and ensuring staff are being attentive, they were very elusive, probably due to the amount of complaints they were receiving, we were advised over 2000 complaints had been noted. Princess management, if you have a ship to full capacity then ensure you have the staff on board to offer a relaxing and enjoyable holiday for your passengers, we have had a weeks worth of stress and disappointment.

Seasoned Cruiser, but first time with Princess. Just disembarked from Sky Princess, a 7 day trip from S'hampton to Norway. Have previously used Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Cunard, MSC to name most but not all. Good points, Ship was commissioned in 2019, then Covid hit, so this ship, the Sky Princess is still almost brand new. I found the staff to be very helpful and friendly, with only one exception which I personally witnessed, which was understandable given the general failure of the Princess Medalion system. (More about that later). One evening the Captain made several worrying announcements about a fire in the incinerator, the last of which was a rambling explanation that the fire had been contained! In truth, I would have preferred either no such public announcement or just one stating there had been an issue that had been resolved. I fail to see why the guests needed to become involved as the problem was resolved without any guests intervention. THE PRINCESS MEDALION SYSTEM. Basically, it worked sporadically, not at all when the ship had no internet, which was practically daily in the Norwegian Fjords, When it did work, several guests informed me they either waited thirty minutes plus for the delivery of a drink/meal, or despite notification of a delivery, no drink ever arrived. The system is designed to allow guests to order food or drink from anywhere on the ship among other features to avoid queueing at bars. In fact what was happening was, the bars were overwhelmed by remote orders when the system was working, and couldn't also deal with the queues at the bars in front of them, resulting in fewer, rather than more guests receiving quick service. I spoke to many guests, none of whom I knew previously, and the broad consensus was, it's a good idea that simply didn't work on this cruise! Maybe in other parts of the world where the ship gets a consistent internet signal, it may be fine, for me the system was down for the majority of my trip. My fellow travelers had mixed experiences, which seems to indicate the type of phone you use may have an impact? If not for the failure of the Medalion system I would probably have awarded 4 stars. But again, as the system was down, meaning the crew took orders based on room numbers, several guests had issues with their bills as drinks appeared on their bills that they hadn't ordered. Simple mistakes by bar staff or something else? Idk! So would I cruise with Princess again? Yes with the proviso that their prices reflect they fall short of some of their closest rivals. If I had the choice of Princess as opposed to Celebrity for example, if the prices were similar, I would not choose Princess. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the cruise, and the crew was great, but the Medallion system failed for me, why reinvent the wheel? We cruise 2 or 3 times per annum, I would cruise with Princess again, but current 2023 indications are they consider themselves worth as much as some of their better competitors imo.

Currently on the Sky Princess and cannot wait to get home tomorrow. I had high expectations for this cruise line so I'm quite disappointed. The smell of cigarette smoke from the casino permeats the back area of the atrium. The casino should be closed off. We avoided the area!! The room steward was great, however everyday when he wiped around the bathroom sink etc he used a dirty wet cloth. I know because there is a distinct smell from a dirty wet cloth. I had to wipe over it with wet wipes. Not much choice for me in the buffet and watching the food being slapped onto the plate from the server was quite distasteful. The Medallion App was hit and miss. The entertainment was hit and miss. The Norwegian cruise meant decks were empty but all inside areas choccablock. Queues for drinks and nowhere to sit. On a positive note the evening meal and lunch in the dining rooms were nice and well presented, however, the breakfast in the dining room was nothing to shout about. I got the impression from fellow first timers on Princess cruises that they too were disappointed. It is the worse cruise we've been on and we have been in lots. It's a shame because I always thought Princess was a premium cruise line.

I just wanted to give a shoutout to Jacob in the Southampton customer service team who I chatted to earlier today and helped sort out a slight error with a name on the booking. Sorted it as best he could quickly and clearly, offered guidance on what we'd need to bring with us to the terminal and even a bit of advice for one of the ports of call. Really friendly and light years ahead of the customer service I got from the travel agent I actually booked the cruise through! Thanks Jacob :)

By far the worst cruise line we've ever dealt with. We were taking an Alaskan cruise and during this cruise we were going to be in someone else's wedding. Eight days before our departure date they changed our itinerary to where we will no longer be making the wedding due to their change for maintenance on their engine. So we went to cancel our cruise which was just over 4k with the purchase of the insurance. They decided to keep 4k even and only return around $600. Worst experience with this cruise line and we will never use them EVER again. Sail Royal Caribbean!

Have held on for over anhour today and two hours on Tuesday still no reply. I need to contact them as there are issues with our FCC and as everyone else says the options on their site doesn't answer the issues I have. Really am at a loss as to what to do as I thiink I am just on a loop and no one will ever answer

Shocking customer service been on hold for over 2 hours and no email address

We were so ready and looking forward to our first cruise since the dreaded covid pandemic. We were attracted by the Daily Mail advertisement by ROL for the 12 day all inclusive cruise to the canaries. We duly booked and paid about 4 weeks before departure. Travelled to Southampton and parked our car. Mini bus took us to the pier and this was when the tone of the forthcoming cruise was determined. We were informed that some cruisers had that morning received an email from princess informing them to delay their arrival by a few hours as boarding was delayed due to covid on board, the ship had done a transatlantic passage and were later told that a number of the crew had boarded at Fort Lauderdale with covid which spread rapidly. During our 2 hour standing outside the terminal, with no seating or toilets, we were told absolutely nothing, so in excess of 2000 travellers waited patiently with growing frustration with the lack of information. We eventually boarded at 15.30 and were given our non operational medallions, a relatively new feature on Princess, which proved a disaster. After a much needed drink we went to our cabin, so called, superior balcony, to find a bijou, very small, facility with the smallest bathroom I have seen on a ship and room that you could hardly swing a cat. We decided to make the best of it and our cabin steward was marvellous. We had, a few days before boarding, selected our dining options and paid, in advance, for our speciality dining to find that they had all disappeared from the Medallion app and told by guest services that we would have to book daily for each service and venue or dial 138 daily. Visiting the transport cafe, sorry Market Place buffet, the food, drinks service and ambiance was appalling and certainly not up to a 5 star rating🤣. That evening we made our way to the dining room, one of three to choose from and asked that we were happy to share met our first of many table companions where once again the very poor standard of food was apparent. During the rest of the cruise we were shown to different tables every evening as preselection was impossible so the ability to make relationships with fellow cruisers at meal time did not happen. We had booked a couple of speciality restaurants the first being a so called French style facility. We found it apart from a couple of tables, empty no atmosphere and once again the food well below the standard expected. We had booked a second evening at the Italian option, Sabatini’s, and I will compliment them for what was the only really enjoyable meal during the cruise, although once again very poorly utilised. Entertainment generally was ok but once again not up to standards we have experienced with the likes of Celebrity. Now let’s examine the non existent Wi-Fi on board, which we had prepaid at $240 for the cruise period. I had reported to guest services the poor service via the medallion app to be told that this was due to severe problems with the digital system, Wi-Fi, and that this was an ongoing situation from when the ship left the US. The only time we and all the cruisers could use our devices was in port via 4g and at sea the system was inoperable and totally unreliable. I reported this to the digital team on many occasions to be given many very poor excuses. Eventually I spoke to them about a refund and after discussion accepted a 50% refund, which I would add I am still waiting to receive dispute numerous promises from senior officers that this would be credited to my Amex card. If I have to fight Princess on this issue then I will insist on a 100% refund as I was sold a service that I did not receive We will never use or recommend Princess to anybody on the contrary if asked I will advise strongly against anybody booking a cruise with them. I guess it’s back to our trusted Celebrity and I am regretful that this time we did not choose them!

Got last minute deal last October 2021, via agent, not correct details of ports, understand due to COVID, but no booking of drinks package. Advertised as £30 per day, booked direct with Princess on line, charged 56 per day, assumed $ but was £... serve small glasses and limit t o 15 a day, result 2.5 bottles of wine at £56!! No help despite night manager on ship, reception and head office fobbed me off... NEVER USE THIS COMPANY AGAIN!!

Before we've even got on board. My wife and I are going on a 21 day med cruise with Princess. We have been with Princess once before but based on experience to date, this will be our last time. First on a positive note, thank goodness I have a contact in the office to help because without them, this would be unbearable. It seems the crux of the problem is what Princess expects its customers to do, just to book anything. The app is a complete joke. Goodness knows what is going to happen on board if it goes down. I went on the website to try and book into a couple of the restaurants only to be told I have to do this through the app. I then discovered I can't make any reservations until I had paid the balance of the fare. Once I had done that, it was far from straightforward. I also wanted to check out the Chef's table. Apparently this is only once every 7 days but there is nowhere to find out which day other than going through every day ... unless Princess can tell me different. On top of this, we had booked an excursion. One day I was checking my credit card and found 2 refunds. I emailed my contact who informed me that our excursion had been cancelled. About a week later I got an email from Princess informing me and saying I would get a refund in 15 days. I'm not going to go on except to say Princess seem to have gone technology mad - trying to be super modern. Instead of a slick operation, they have an app that seems to be designed by someone who doesn't have a clue, and they have made the whole pre-cruise experience tedious and tiresome for customers and leaving me feeling like I need a week long training course in how to do anything. Sorry Princess, there are a lot of cruise companies out there and after this cruise, it will be goodbye from me. I will take my custom to a company that makes me feel like a valued customer rather than an unpaid employee!

This has to be the worst company I have ever had to deal with , We went on The Ruby Princess in January 2022 San Francisco to Hawaii 15 day cruise to say this was 15 days held captive is being polite. The food in board was mostly unedible information was not forthcoming entertainment nonexistent 15 nights of the same band ( not that the band were bad ) But the same artist for 15 nights is more than enough for anyone I have sent emails to Princess and have been trying to contact them since returning at the beginning of February No response at all I have been on hold many times for over an hour and a half on many of my attempts to speak to someone We are now in April and still no one responds to either phone calls or emails Princess make Ryanair look like superstars 😡

Customer support is non existent. I guess I am referring to the Australian arm of the company in particular as that is where I live. Attempts to reach them on the phone are met with the automated message about extremely high volumes of calls and please call back later, hangs up, not even a queueing system. They have a live chat option which puts you in a waiting queue for about 10 minutes and then dumps you unanswered. There is an online enquiry form which sends an automated email response thanking me for my enquiry and once again apologising for any delays. Now 2 days and still waiting. An email enquiry has now gone 7 days unanswered. I sympathise with the company as it is re-emerging from a long Covid induced hibernation and needs to rebuild but it is a customer focused service oriented business and they should have been planning for the resumption of cruising. They have plenty of support options but they are all dead ends. This is no way to treat loyal customers who are trying to help Princess get back up and running. I’m now wondering what our onboard experience will be like.

Have been trying unsuccessfully to speak to customer service member for the last 10 days for up to 1hour.No one answers, do they actually use phones. Have a cruise booked for September, and have issues with a FCC from a previous booking that have still not been attached to current booking.That and the sheer frustration of THE APP, I'm beginning to feel that I should cut my losses and cancel, and find a more customer orientated cruise line.

Asked agent how to get to LA port for pier93..San Pedro from LA Airport. Was there a shuttle run by Princess? No..he said..yes there was! $34 ea one way ..Princess desk at airport.!! Instead he booked us limo return £156... On ship people booked shuttle back to airport..$34 ea again. Also if your flight later than 7pm then book Princess trip San Diego..take you & luggage off ship in morning..then to airport for flight..much better. 2 ships in dock = 2000 people thru exit..can't go back inside for loos..no food or drink..like Glastonbury!! No one can find their taxis/pick ups..bedlam!

Booked a 50th family cruise in October. Had nice time, Talked into trying casino & given instructions how play by staff. Won a few times and felt good. Told winnings were auto banked back to my account like were taken. Came off cruise and 5 months later still no payout just excuses cheque in post. So anyone thinking doing don't as they robbed us. Quick to take but don't payout debts. Typical American company stealing. Shame as like I said regal ship & crew were great.

Terribly run boarding performance. Total confusion! A muti billion dollar corporation and they were not using a PA system. They had several "in charge" but giving out confusing information. An absolute calamity.

It's so hard to contact by phone (or using online forms). Online forms go unanswered, and phones can ring for over a 1hr 30 mins before answered. When did that sort of service become acceptable? Doesn't matter how pretty your ships are or great the itineraries are if you can't actually reach the company to deal with any changes or issues. I do dozens of cruises every year but will never book Princess again and advise everyone else to avoid.

I'd like to thank a guy named Sam Kinnaird in Southampton customer service for absolute 5 star customer service. After umpteen problems with Covid cancellations over the last couple of years we've just had a cruise cancelled to Russia. Sam got us our refund double quick and answered emails quickly and helpfully. Thank Sam 10/10!

I have never been on cruise before and I had a couple of issues,one about the deposit which said I had not paid and my cruise would be cancelled but I was still on the cruise as they wanted the full amount in July for an October cruise which is normal and the other was about the club medallion app which is beyond useless.I managed to speak to someone after ten minutes and told her the situation but she said in poor English that I needed to speak to another department which she would pass my call to,but no it was back to the main switchboard.Thirty minutes later still no answer.Pathetic customer service,I feel like cancelling with this company.

I have been a customer with Princess Cruises for many years but I am sad to say that it appears that customer support services have fallen to zero. Why on the hell don't you answer the phone,and stop saying that your customers are important to you. WORDS are cheap. A very frustrated customer. Barry Couchman. 16.03.22.