What I Really Think After Multiple Cruises

This is a sponsored post for Cruise118.com.

I didn’t expect Princess Cruises to become one of my favourite cruise lines.

Before my first cruise with Princess, I saw it as a fairly traditional option. It wasn’t the cruise line making headlines for record-breaking attractions or trying to convince everyone it had reinvented cruising.

And honestly, I wasn’t sure exactly what it was that was supposed to make Princess Cruises stand out against a sea of other options.

Having now sailed on Enchanted Princess and Sun Princess (twice), as well as spending time visiting several other Princess ships, I finally get it. Princess doesn’t necessarily have the biggest attractions or the flashiest ships, but it does something that many cruise lines struggle with – it makes cruising feel easy.

That might not sound exciting, but after more than 50 cruises, I’ve realised how valuable that really is.

What Makes Princess Different

When people ask me what Princess Cruises is like, I sometimes struggle to answer because there isn’t one obvious thing that stands out above everything else.

Instead, it’s lots of smaller things that just work really well together.

The ships are comfortable and easy to navigate. The food is consistently very good. The entertainment offers plenty of choice without feeling overwhelming, and the service is friendly without feeling forced. Even the technology genuinely improves the experience rather than creating more things to learn.

Individually, none of those things are actually unique. But put them all together, and they create a cruise experience that feels just so straightforward.

And it means I get to spend less time thinking about logistics and more time enjoying my holiday.

The Medallion Technology Really Is That Good

Before trying it for myself, I assumed Princess Medallion was probably a bit of a gimmick.

Cruise lines introduce new technology all the time and not all of it makes a meaningful difference once you’re onboard. The Medallion, however, is one of the few cruise innovations I’ve used that genuinely changes the experience from day one.

It’s a small wearable device that replaces your cruise card, but it does a lot more than that. Your cabin door unlocks automatically as you approach, boarding the ship is quicker and crew members can identify you without constantly asking for your cabin number.

The feature I probably appreciate most is being able to locate family members around the ship.

When I’m travelling with my kids, everybody inevitably heads off in different directions at some point. Instead of sending messages or wandering around trying to work out where everyone’s disappeared to, I can simply open the app and see where they are.

It sounds like quite a small thing, but it’s one of the features I miss most when I’m sailing with other cruise lines.

Then there’s the food and drink delivery service, which again sounds gimmicky, but it works surprisingly well too. You can order drinks, snacks and meals through the app and have them delivered pretty much anywhere onboard. The first time I used it, I wasn’t entirely convinced it would work, especially on a busy sea day, but somehow the crew always seem to find you.

Ordering a drink while sitting by the pool and having it appear a short while later still feels slightly futuristic, but it quickly becomes something I take completely for granted.

Read more: 21 Things You Need To Know About Princess Cruises’ Medallion

The Food Works Well For Real Life

Look, food is always subjective and what one cruiser loves, another might avoid completely. I get that.

What I can say is that I’ve always found it very easy to eat well on Princess.

The main dining rooms offer plenty of choice, the buffet is honestly one of the best cruise buffets I’ve come across and the newer ships in particular have a huge variety of casual dining options at no extra cost.

As a vegan travelling with a vegetarian husband and two sometimes-fussy children, that’s something I notice straight away. Finding somewhere that keeps everyone happy isn’t always easy, especially after a busy day ashore when nobody wants to spend ages deciding where to eat.

On Princess, it was never something I found myself worrying about. There were always vegan options available, plenty of vegetarian dishes and enough variety that everyone could usually find something they actually wanted to eat rather than something they felt they had to settle for.

I think that’s one of the reasons Princess works so well for families and larger groups. Everyone can usually find something they fancy without too much compromise.

I also really enjoyed the speciality restaurants. The teppanyaki restaurant stands out as one of the most memorable meals I’ve had onboard, partly because the food was excellent but mostly because the whole experience was just great fun. The chef had the entire table laughing throughout the meal and by the end it felt as much like entertainment as dinner.

Oh, and the Princess Cruises pizza? I agree with a lot of reviewers – it is the best pizza at sea.

Read more: Princess Cruises Dining Secrets Most Guests Don’t Know

One Of The Best Cruise Lines For Multigenerational Families

The biggest misconception I hear about Princess Cruises is that it’s only for older travellers.

I can see where that idea comes from. Princess doesn’t market itself as heavily to families as some other cruise lines and you won’t find the same focus on giant waterslides and adrenaline-fuelled attractions.

But that’s very different from saying it’s only for older guests. I’ve cruised with my children, with my mum, with my mother-in-law and with other family members, and Princess is one of the few cruise lines where it genuinely feels like everybody gets the holiday they want.

The kids’ clubs are great, there are plenty of activities throughout the day and there’s enough entertainment to keep busy people occupied from morning until night if that’s what they enjoy.

At the same time, there are plenty of quieter spaces for people who’d rather spend an afternoon reading a book or watching the sea go by.

What I particularly like is that children are welcomed onboard without the whole ship feeling as though it’s been designed entirely around them. For a lot of families, I think that’s actually a really nice balance.

Princess Plus And Premier Remove A Lot Of Hassle

One thing Princess does particularly well is making it easy to customise your cruise.

You can absolutely book the standard fare and have a fantastic holiday. But for many people, Princess Plus or Princess Premier will be worth considering.

What I like most about these packages isn’t necessarily the money-saving aspect. It’s the convenience.

Once drinks, WiFi, gratuities and other extras are bundled together, I don’t spend my holiday thinking about what things cost. I order a drink if I fancy one, connect to the WiFi when I need it and generally just get on with enjoying myself.

For me, that’s a big part of what holidays are supposed to be about. Whether the packages are worth it will depend on how you cruise – there’s no single right or wrong answer here – but I can absolutely see why so many Princess guests choose them.

Read more: Princess Premier Review: Is the All-Inclusive Package Worth It?

My Overall Thoughts On Princess Cruises

After several Princess cruises, I now completely understand why the cruise line has so many loyal followers who cruise with them again and again.

Princess isn’t trying to be the most luxurious cruise line at sea, and it isn’t trying to offer the biggest attractions either. Instead, it focuses on delivering a holiday that works well for a wide range of people, whether you’re travelling as a couple, a family or part of a larger multigenerational group.

The food is consistently very good, the service is friendly and the ships are designed in a way that makes life onboard feel easy. Add in the Medallion technology and it’s one of the most seamless cruise experiences I’ve had.

There isn’t one single feature that makes Princess stand out above everything else. Instead, it’s lots of smaller things that just work really well together. And it does make the cruise line have a bit more of a premium feel – just because of how well it all works together.

After spending time onboard several Princess ships, I can completely understand why so many people keep coming back. I’m definitely going to.

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