Princess Cruises 5 Pros and 5 Cons Cruising With Them 

One of the 'cons' of dressing up...you do not have to use the dining room on formal nights. Go to the buffet. I actually like formal nights. :)

We quit dressing up for formal nights. We just go to buffet. This will be our 20th Princess cruise 12/14/2019.

Another plus for Princess: they have self-service laundromats in addition to the ship's laundry.

We have cruised 7 times on Princess and have always loved every one of them. We cruise in a outside cabin or mini suite. The service on our cruises is wonderful from our room steward to our dining room help. Never worry about cruising on Princess they give top notch service

Love Princess. They do a great job. We really like the anytime dining and allows for a easier schedule.. The extra charges you list as cons are on MOST ships...

Some of the things that you call "cons" I find attract me to princess cruise lines, such as the dress code and the clientele. BTW, I've been on 5 princess cruises ALL of which I have enjoyed.

I have done my first Cruise ever with Princess, the number 1 Con cruising with Princess is once you Cruise with them you will not really want to cruise with any other cruise line, it seriously becomes harder since you have cruised with one of the best everyone else will be compared to Princess. Oh dear. Great Video Gary. 👍🏼

We are Princess Elite and although we have tried other cruise lines, we much prefer Princess.

The so-called “Cons” are subjective! 6 times with Princess and love it!

A "pro" on Princess ships is that they have self-service laundromats. They also have for-fee pickup laundry.

One thing I like about Princess is the “longer onshore”. Most recently I just did the Mediterranean and almost every time where the last ship to leave the port and always one of the first in. As an example in Athens, we left at 8pm and was the last ship whereas others were leaving at 4pm. In Dubrovnik MCI left at 1:30 given the people on that ship could not spend the time to fully go through the city. As for tipping and drinking you just need to keep an eye on the “promos” they have and rebook your room under one of them. Most people do not know that you can rebook their room if the price goes down or the promo is better. As an example, I just rebooked my 2021 cruise under the new promo that is getting me free drink package, free wifi and free tipping and it was only $5 more expensive per person.

We are coming up to our 4th cruise with Princess. We are retired and we love the traditional feel Princess gives us. We enjoy the slow pace and being pampered.

Yes I LOVE Princess and was part of 50 Years in Alaska. I found their staff to be the best I have encountered on board. I will be on Sky in Europe Summer 2020. If I never went on another line I bet I would be perfectly happy...I will probably try others but I loved it.

Well done, Gary. Completely agree with you that it is largely based on per couple traditional cruising. Another good video 😃

Great video, thanks. I am cruising Princess for the first time on December 1st and this has helped set my expectation in comparison to Royal and Norweigian.

I took a Princess Cruise solo and loved it.

As one half of a "mature couple", I don't consider that point a con! Agree with most of the other points though. As we like to dress for dinner anyway, the dress code was never an issue for us. Great video as usual - we started watching TFT a few months before our first ever cruise, and found a lot of useful information. You really helped us avoid a few pitfalls.

We love Princess...and while we have taken cruises with other cruise lines, Princess is our favorite. We recently took a seven week cruise on the Royal. Be aware that if you do a big international cruise and there is something really special on the itinerary...like in the Falklands ...(South America Cruise)..you need to book the popular excursions ahead of time...sometimes months! We booked two excursions in two different ports to see Penguins. One of those ports was cancelled due to the weather. Lots of disappointed passengers. However, we did make it to the Falklands (and weather there can be dicey and the port often is cancelled). We thoroughly enjoyed our Penguin visit, but there were a lot of people who were unaware that these popular excursions sell out. Some places, you can get lucky and book a similar excursion once in port...but not always.

Solo traveller here. It is a premium shock but I've managed to get nice balcony cabins, last minute and with a discount. My loyalty level did hit *Elite* a lot faster than fellow travellers but I stay quiet about how many cruises/days it took to acquire that level. The perks are good. My WiFi always gets a generous addition, the laundry is a big plus. Having free wash and iron is great. Discounts on store purchases are automatic too. My account has always been accurate. I will endeavour to go to the solo travellers meet up in Feb when I sail I just don't like it being called 'singles meet & greet' it sounds like a hunting ground like that. 🤔

I wanted to personally thank you for your in depth and thoughtful content. I had an interview with the company today. With zero knowledge to having so much talking points, I was forever grateful to view your content before going into the interview. So Thank you🙏🙏

Having completed my 60th cruise with Princess, I find that the cruise line is generally excellent. Food is good quality, on board entertainment good, and shore excursions reasonable costs. I always book a suite. However, you may find many “Walker and Wheelchair” passengers Princess cruises.

Thanks for the video. Great information!❤️

I love cruise line PR photos. They make it look like there are 25 people onboard at most. The pools are relaxing with hundreds of empty lounges and 10 people sitting around. The buffet has 3 people casually choosing their food. Then you get there ...

Thank you so much for the information!

Ive only cruised with princess I love them so much

As usual, another very informative and interesting video Gary! Great job in providing detailed info on the pros and cons of Cruising on one the the Princess Cruise Line Ships. This video will be very beneficial for anyone who would like to determine if Princess Cruises would be a ‘fit’ for the traveler. Thanks for taking the time to produce this excellent video...Ed

I’ve had a good time on all of my Princess cruises. I’ve taken them on an Alaskan cruise, Mexican Riviera, and Western Caribbean. And, yes, the different price points depending on budget are nice too. We stayed in an interior cabin for Alaska (not recommended), an Ocean View for the Mexican cruise, and a Deluxe balcony for the Caribbean. Honestly, we loved having a balcony and plan on getting one every time we cruise now.

Thanks Gary, I always enjoy your videos. I appreciate the tips! I'm planning a cruise soon. Haven't been one in 10 years. 🤩😊

My plan for formal nights is to get dinner at buffet area instead of main dining area. One out of 5 nights is not a big deal. :)

This was excellent information! We sailed on Celebrity the last 2 cruises and while I really enjoyed the higher end cruising experience (I like to dress up and even on casual days I will normally wear nicer clothes.) My husband on the other hand, is more of a casual, super relaxed guy. It's difficult to find a cruise that offers a more traditional experience and still find something my husband will be comfortable with. I think Princess has what I am looking for but not necessarily something my husband will like. Thank you! So helpful and informative and I greatly appreciate it!

Thank you for your time making this.

Have cruised Carnival and Norwegian so far, heading on Princess later this year. Excited to try it out!

Gary, we are Princess cruisers, just returned from 22 days in the Med, and love the line. We do however try to keep in mind who is paying the bill. We don't feel obliged to dress up for formal nights - I do usually put on a tie, but no jacket, and no one has ever even looked askance at me, so don't skip the dining room because you don't want to dress up. On another note, the medallion net still has lousy internet, at least on the Emerald Princess. We have free minutes, and it is very frustrating to watch the clock tick while a file or email uploads. Although it may be the fastest of any of the major cruise lines, and touted to allow people to live stream, I found that most videos stopped frequently to download more content. Although better than in the past, internet on board still has a ways to go before I would call it good. Still love Princess though and have booked another cruise for July.

Congratulations on the 100,000 subscribers! I agree, as always. Taking Princess to Greenland from NYC in August. Greenland is on my bucket list so I jumped at the chance. I don't think there are any other cruise lines that have gone there. Solo traveler, so yeah I have to pay up but I usually have to do that... Not interested in the formal nights but I love the buffet and plan to spend a lot of time in my (great) balcony cabin so I should be good... Thanks, Gary!

I will be on the Sky Princess in June 2020, so the timing of all your Princess videos from aboard the Sky is perfect for me!!!

Very informative, thanks Gary

I was fortunate enough to have my first Cruise ever on Princess Cruises from Alaska to Vancouver on the Royal Princess a Medalion Class ship, the experience was amazing, the best part is when you arrive at your stateroom, you don't have to look for your room card and open the door. Gr8 Video. 😇

Hello Gary and another very informative video you’ve done and I’d like to jot down on paper any such details you’ve emphasised about any such cruises that I’d like to go on at such time sorry about using the such word a lot so I must congratulate you on surpassing 100k subscribers and look forward with great appreciation to the wonderful videos you do so until then take care and cheerio

Thanks, the Con's weren't so bad except for dress-up night. But everything else was great.

Been there and done that, Ruby and Crown. Real nice ships and great service. Like the mister said, those activities off ship are very expensive and not included in the price. What I was proud of doing was taking an all inclusive photo (i don't remember the name) prior to our 21day cruise. All pictures taken of us on ship have been put on a USB key for no extra fees.

I took the 'Poseidan' adventure on board the Costa Concordia and it lived up to the hype!

This ship has indeed a beautiful, elegant interior.

really like princess, royal caribbean, oceania, some of the most destinations offered, ports. celebrity, carnival also fine depending on regions.

I've done 2 cruises on Holland America (plus 2 booked), 4 or Celebrity, and 4 Carnival/RCCL. Now that we have Carnival shareholder stock, Princess becomes a more attractive option. We're also going to start booking cruises with an American Express Platinum, which at least for here in the US, works with HAL/Princess for an extra $100 - $300 on board credit.

I have been on tons of princess cruise ships and all have been beautiful and lovely ships and crew

Princess has great entertainment compared to other lines. They have so many activities on board even ballroom dancing every night. The passengers are a bit younger than some competing lines. Very well run, few lines even on the large ships. We cruise Princess usually twice a year.

I was on a Princess Cruise twice and once on a Royal Caribbean. I seem to like Princess Cruises better. The extras you mentioned are generally extra on all Cruise Lines. The one thing I really liked about Princess Cruise is the Burger & Pizza Bar on the Lido deck. Also I found the service to be slightly better on princess. Although the Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas was a much bigger ship with more amenities I tend to like smaller ships.

Another great Pro on Princess is the great loyalty program! Captain Circle It is probably on of the best cruise program.

Very good video Gary!

I did cruise many years ago. It was a beautiful old ship, well appointed, the food was thougtful and well prepared. The staff was pleasant and talented. It was delightful.Id like to cross the Atlantic on 'the Queen' but I will never set foot on one of those floating hotels. I hate people.

We love Princess, have been on 21 cruises on many different Princess Ships. We are very excited about taking out first World Cruise on the Island Princess January 2021. 🛳🧘🏼‍♂️🏃🏻‍♀️🌻☮️🥰

Great video

I love your videos, both the content and engaging style. I would love to have a video on which premium cruise lines are your personal favourites and why. Thanks :-)

I am about to do my second cruise with princess I found them to be great the staff onboard the golden princess for my first cruise were fantastic I found some of the other passengers rude to some of the ships crew where the crew I meet and had dealings with were great like the steward who was looking after the deck I was on he was great every time he saw me we had a bit of a chat other staff were the same

Thanks for this one! Nice overview! I have only cruised with Princess and I love them! I'm booked coming up with Disney and Carnival, and Princess' web site and check-in process is so much easier and more efficient. (I'm quite disappointed in Disney's whole pre-cruise experience. I know onboard will be amazing but I expected better from them) The Medallion has worked flawlessly for me! I'm a Princess fan all around! 💖

Gary, my wife and I like princess cruises. Our first experience was in Alaska and we stayed in their property in Denali. So they do have a great property there. My wife really loved the train ride from Denali here to Whittier where we got on the ship in cruised southward. I’ll add a couple of things to what you’ve already said about Princess. First of all, we never buy the Wi-Fi package. In Alaska for the most part you’re in North America and you cruise close to the shore, so we were able to pick up North American cell towers. We just went on a cruise in New England from New York City to Quebec city. Same thing. Also, regarding Wi-Fi and they’re on board apps. Even before they started the medallion series, one could use limited Wi-Fi even without paying for it to text each other on the ship. This is a huge advantage. Also the Medallion works in the limited wi-fi no charge way you one need not purchase WiFi to do the Medallion thing. We love the shows and the classiness of the materials made to build the ship like all the brass and marble. The cruise staff are always very very nice. The food is good. My wife and I love the shows. One other thing. Even when you buy a Coke or a coffee or even a specialty coffee a Coke is about two bucks. Coffee is about what you pay in the United States. Coffee itself is free but if you want specialty coffee it’s about what you pay at a Starbucks or anywhere else. They don’t gauges you. Also room service is free. This really helps with early morning excursion departures. Finally, we found their princes promo cruise items like jackets and sweaters and vests and things like that to be far superior than say Royal Caribbean. We cruised on the symphony of the seas in the Western Mediterranean on Royal Caribbean in its inaugural season. One annoying thing with Royal Caribbean for us was there a constant trying to upsell us. It went on day after day constantly trying to upsell us to go to some fancy restaurant or something like that. It was a real annoyance. We always assumed that royal Caribbean was a cut above, but you taught us that Princess cruises are a notch above Royal Caribbean. We have found this to be true. One other a little annoyance between those two cruise lands. Royal Caribbean would try to get you to book your excursions through them ahead of time. Then, as you got closer and closer to the cruise departure time, they would begin to put those on sale. They would offer the same excursions for a lower price. It was a real hassle to have to get a better price from Royal Caribbean because it involved actually refunding you for the cruise and then selling it to you all over again. During that time, someone could’ve actually bought your slot and you would not get that particular excursion. With princes, they don’t change prices. The excursions are fairly well priced from the beginning and they don’t change. Much simpler accounting on your credit card bill as well without all the charges and refunds and reduced charges.

I have been on 2 Princess cruises. One was fabulous. One had a lot of issues, like leaking ceiling by the casino and a really rough night at sea, for which I place no blame. I have one scheduled for next year and even though I have been on 2, I am still enjoying your tips! The biggest "Con" to me is the relentless sales people trying to sell jewelry! I learned to side-step the shops.

Another informative video again, well done this guy gives the best advice .

I first Cruse was the inside passage in Alaska….I think there were 2200 guest on board . It was wonderful ‼️ we were 4

I am single and have cruised 6 times on Princess and have enjoyed every cruise. I enjoy the traditional style cruising that Princess ships afford me. I found that the solo fares on Princess were not as expensive as RCL or Celebrity this might be because I am a platinum member and get different cost saving perks.

Have been on the South Pacific cruise from Australia to Fiji islands and a couple more, a 14 night cruise and it was excellent. Was fortunate to be on not only the year ( 2015) but the day they were celebrating their 50th birthday and they really made it an experience for all the guests. They are certainly designed for more a relaxing cruise and experience. I find Royal Caribbean does a great job, the best easily of incorporating both segments into their ships. Normally you go either for relaxing cruises or one with no shortage of activities etc. Royal Caribbean you can do both easily, and when you want to relax you easily are able to escape the noise. In Australia the dress code you were referring to doesn’t happen. You can most certainly wear jeans and shorts on cruises from Australia and the vast majority of passengers do. They for example on the last 14 night cruise I was on had 2 formal nights in that time and it was optional whether you wore suits etc. People did and many didn’t. There were many who speaking to them decided to do it on one of the nights, great opportunity for a nice photo etc. However they were not going to do both. But shorts, jeans, singlets etc can certainly be worn on a princess ship operating out of Australia

u are the best cruise u tube guy. are u also a travel agent? i want to use an on point TA for a europe\italt 15 day cruise cruise. i think u r on point and awesome!

Thank you

Your videos are great my wife and I have been wanting to go on a cruise for years but now I am actually making the type of money to allow for leisure we don’t come from that part of society and we don’t know anything about it making plans so this is so helpful

I went on my first Princess cruise last month. My only complaint was the age group. I'm 45 and most of the passengers were 60 and above. I still had a good time, but I think I had more fun cruising with Carnival.

Holland America has a few sister companies. One is lodging in Alaska & Canada. The other is Grayline, which are excursions for land tours. They also have railcars on the Alaska Railroad.

I'm not a suit wearing guy but I did wear a nice vest white shirt and black pants. On formal night it's worth dressing up just for the free drinks I mean that's why I did it lol. Free beer, champagne and mimosas were given away I think I had 3 drinks. I just disembarked royal princess 1 day ago and was really impressed with it all.

Nice post. We normally cruise with budget P&O Australia but next may we are travelling from Adelaide to visit the Gold Coast theme parks. Just for something different we are flying to Sydney and trying them out with a 2 day sampler from Sydney to Brisbane and then flying back home. If it lives up to expectations will book Princess for a New Zealand cruise. Princess also recognise P&O and Carnival cruises in their loyalty program. I don’t know about international but fare price here also includes gratuities.

I would agree with you on all your points herr

Most of the CONS mentioned are ALSO on RCI, NCL, CELEBRITY & CARNIVAL

Going on the Royal Princess soon, thanks for the info

PLEASE do a video on the Haven and comparing "Haven" like facilities on other cruise lines. No one did this and I would bet that few people even know that this type of option exists. Even better, we don't have to pay full price for the Haven since there is a bidding before the cruise leaves,which allows for a lower price.

We are hopefully sailing in 2022 on the Enchanted Princess. 🤞🤞 come on US, get your act together.

I haven't been on my first cruise yet, but I think I'm going to prefer the traditional/luxury cruise experience over the floating resort/shopping mall ships with 6k passengers. I'm more of a laidback guy, don't like huge crowds, and don't need lots of flashy activities to be thoroughly entertained.

If you don't want to go to the trouble of formal wear, just have dinner in Horizon that night. No problem.

I have to mention that you are not required to go to formal nights if you do not want to dress up,but still wish to eat in MDR the other nights.

Love Princess, they are our speed. Taking Princess Majestic to Great Barrier Reef in November this year, can't wait.

Having shown his blue medallion I take it this is his first Princess cruise then, very well researched for a first timer.

I just hope they get all the bugs out of the Medallion as it took over 9hrs to get them oceanready for 3

Have you done any Disney cruises? We're taking the QM2 to Southampton, bopping around Europe for a bit, and I think I want to do a Disney Mediterranean cruise as a treat for my kids. Any videos for Disney?

In my opinion one of their best pros is their online booking and stateroom selection system. You can bring the deck plans up on your computer and see what staterooms are available and at what cost. Providing you book early enough you can choose your stateroom and have a confirmed booking in a few minutes.You know what you are going to get because you chose what you are going to get.This is especially helpful to those of us who want a stateroom in a quiet part of the ship.

What type of traveler will you encounter on board? Princess passengers tend to be well traveled and sophisticated, but not stand-offish or snobbish. Easy conversationalists. Passengers are also considerate and well behaved - no running up and down the halls, sitting on stairs, letting children run amok...that sort of thing. There are usually very few young children aboard all itineraries, including the Caribbean. There is also not much in the way of nightlife after dinner and the shows (the clientele who choose to cruise Princess tend to turn in relatively early - myself included!). Princess is a great line for those who want a relaxing cruise - away from crowds and over-stimulation. It is my favorite line: I’ve taken over 20 cruises with them because I enjoy their traditional cruise experience with friendly people, good food, quiet spaces and wonderful destinations. Congrats, Gary on 100,000 subscribers (I may have been your 100,000th. I watch your videos but just realized I had not subscribed!)

We have used HAL four times for cruising to Alaska. We would like to try Alaska on Princess!

how about madrid, segovia, pont du gard, nimes, albi? also would like ships with more classical music, theatre, dance shows. smaller ships more money up front, sometimes closer distance from port.

As usual, another very good video from you, Gary. I just came off my first cruise, which was with Princess, and whilst you're right that they take the formal nights seriously, it's probably important to say that people don't have to take part. The 2 good options for dining on formal nights, if you want to wear ordinary casual clothes are the excellent buffet, or the pizza / burger / chip informal dining places. I'm not a fan of dressing up - especially when it's 30 degrees C, and I found these were a great way to avoid it.

I had watched a number of yr vids, thank you. This one was particularly helpful and timely. I was considering my 1st cruise. I'm a solo traveler so it looks like Princess cruises are not for me.

Hope you will showing this ship... we are doing the Sky in March 2020.. our first Princess cruise for us.... :)

On viewing your video and having taken another princess cruise last month I thing princess are looking on taking the lower middle order cruise line. Having been on Majestic princess twice in 14 months was disappointed that the show was the same and the grill restaurant was at best average again like the previous cruise. The ship was great but having been on 4 different lines I would take celebrity and will be on a future cruise later this year to Alaska and Canada.

Our upcoming cruise in 2022 to Alaska is on a Princess.

Gary- Most of the cons are just extra charges for items you don’t need. $60.00. Per day per person for drinks? I would be intoxicated all day if I drank that much! One or two beers and a comped drink in the casino is all I want. $30-60 for upscale dining? Why? They serve great food in the dining room. Hate dress up nights? Trundle up to the buffet. Wi-Fi? Who needs it while on vacation! My wife loves the fresh flowers, I savor being waited on and talking with the staff. We have to learn to unplug, relax and recharge while on board. It is the journey and the people you meet on the way. That is what a vacation is all about.😎

Second time we spent Vacation on Princess . Everything was good , service , food , entertainment , friendly crew . One thing we don't like is the rule of package for drinks . We paid over $ 900 for 10 days for one person and we could not share any drink even with wife or friend.I could use the package only for few drinks a day and the rest left .This policy make people angry .Next time we go to Cuba or somewhere else.

Ive been on many cruises with different cruise lines hands down princess cruises is the best

The "cons" you mentioned regarding "extras" are the same as on most other ship like NCL and Carnival.

I would like to see you do the same thing for the other cruise lines as well. Do you have any?

Love cruises with not many children,why I like Princess.

Food and serenity whenever im with princess

I did a full transit Panama cruise which left from Acapulco and ended up in San Juan Puerto Rico. Day 3, I came down with Noro Virus and was told not to leave my room until cleared by medical staff. I understand the need to limit the possibility of further infection of other passengers, but it totally ruined my trip. I was kept in my room for over half of the trip. My suspicion is that my room had not been properly disinfected after the last passengers who most likely passed on their virus to me. After contacting and explaining these facts with Princess...they tried to offer nothing for my inconvenience. Also, the two friends I was traveling with (different cabin) also came down with the virus...After repeatedly explaining how inconvenienced I felt..the best the customer relations department offered me was 1/2 price on any future cruise over the next year. I did not feel is was a reasonable compensation for what became a really horrible experience...Not cruising with Princess again..sorry...

Gary, your the fuc%kin best. Hey man, can you please do a video on travel agents/agencies? Or booking through one these days, positives and negatives? Thank you.

My comment is what is the best time to travel on a cruise from California LA OK where the water is calmer and relaxed

Nice