Originally we were not scheduled to take this cruise as we had done the exact same cruise last year on the Sun Princess. We had booked the 7 night Southern Caribbean itinerary for January of 2000 on the Sea Princess. About 8 weeks before we were scheduled to leave, our TA got a phone call and Princess had overbooked the Sea Princess cruise and if we could wait until April they would put us on the 11-night Panama Canal itinerary on a brand new ship AND refund us $2000 and identical cabin type. Well, it was definitely a no-brainer for us. Following is a review of the Panama Canal cruise. This was the first time to have a cabin all the way at the back and we would do it again. It is definitely a different feel than being in the middle but it wasn’t a bothersome difference. You feel more vibration for sure.

It was as wonderful as last year’s cruise, with a couple of negatives (not major) and a couple of pluses so it evened out overall. The average age on this cruise was about 65 and we loved it! I much prefer an older crowd – makes me feel young again!

THE SHIP

The Ocean Princess is identical to the Sun, Sea and Dawn. The ship was spotless as it was only two months old. There were a couple of MAJOR positives in this ship over the Sun Princess.

a.The air conditioning in the cabin was FAR superior b.They have put an indoor/outdoor material on the balcony floor and it virtually eliminates any noise from the cabin above – no more dragging plastic chair noise. A minor change but makes a big difference. .c. New cardiovascular equipment in the gym. I don’t know if Princess upgraded equipment on all ships but the Ocean had the new elliptical machines and more treadmills. We worked out all but one day (sometimes twice a day) and never once had to wait for equipment. The treadmills do require sign-up.

The ship is beautiful!

ITINERARY

I will just list the itinerary as most of the islands have been reviewed before.

Embark in San Juan 
St. Thomas 
Martinique 
Grenada 
La Guaira (Caracas) – why they still stop here is beyond me 
Curacao (favorite port) 
At Sea 
Panama Canal 
At Sea 
At Sea 
At Sea – arrive in Acapulco/overnight on ship 
Disembark Acapulco 

Even the Acapulco Airport has improved. Those of you who have been there will know what I mean. It was actually totally air conditioned.

CASINO

The slots were as tight as any cruise we have taken – terrible. However, they had some new slot machine games that provided brief moments of excitement. Only a couple of times did $20 last more than 5-10 minutes.

SHOWS

Definitely weak this cruise. Most of the production shows got cancelled due to computer problems but this was not a big deal to us. The comedian Billy Vader was hilarious and really made up for the rest of the bad shows. The comedian/juggler (can’t remember his name) was TERRIBLE.

FOOD

The food was WONDERFUL! Much better this time but the service was a bit slow (no big deal). I am not a big dessert fan but Princess home made ice cream is to die for. I am not talking about the ice cream on the pool deck, I am talking about the ice cream on the dinner menu – YUM!

MISCELLANEOUS

At the captain’s club party they awarded champagne to the most traveled couple – 38 cruises and 400+ days at sea…..I aspire to reach that total someday.

OVERALL SUMMARY

It was a fabulous cruise and as usual, Princess outdid themselves in most areas.