Nightlife on Princess

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kimmy

Guest
I am a loyal RCI passenger and have been considering trying Princess. I sailed on the Star about 11 years ago but did not have a good experience.

I like a ship with great nightlife (I don't care about the shows, just love to dance and hear great live music) and also lots of activities throughout the day. By activities I mean sports or fitness related activities as well as wine tastings, dance classes, etc. Food is important and I am one of those who orders from the healthy choice menus when cruising. I don't go home with extra baggage if I can help it!

I am mid 40s and often travel solo so it would also be nice if there was a good mix of ages aboard. I avoid ships/sailing dates that attract too may families as I am tired of poorly supervised children running rampant around the decks and in the adult areas..

I prefer a ship in the 80,000 GRT range. The megaliners are just too crowded and impersonal

Can someone recommend a Princess ship that might suit me?

Thanks.
 
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DJA

Guest
Any of the "Sun" class ships (Sun, Dawn, Sea) would be your best bet in terms of size... they are 77,000 GRT, similar to the "Vision" class on RCI. I think they would also give you a good age mix, because they are considered the older ships now (even though they're only 6 years old) so they have a cadre of loyal followers that tend to be older, along with the younger people that they still attract. The newer Princess ships like the bigger "Grand" class tend to be more attractive to families, young people, and first-time cruisers, and less attractive to older more experienced cruisers.

As you know by now, the biggest drivers of age mix are length of cruise and sailing date... and Princess is no exception to that rule. Anything over seven days will drive the age up a bit, and 14 or over will drive it up quite a bit more. Anything when school is out will have lots of kids and families no matter how you slice it.

Princess will have all the activities you've mentioned. They are very strong on things like wine tastings and dance classes, and they have a great healthy choice menu. They have plenty of sports and fitness activities as well, although they don't have a prominent program like "ShipShape". You can stay pretty active in the gym and in classes that they offer... you just have to look for them a little harder on Princess.

The only place Princess may fall down for you is on the night life (I know there are people who will disagree, and hopefully some will reply to your post). Princess in general, but especially the "Sun" class and older ships are just not that lively in terms of "great live music and dancing" ...especially if you move away from sailings with a lot of young people.

I'm a loyal Princess passenger, and in your age group, but I'm just not that lively at night so it's great for me. I've also sailed RCI many times and thoroughly enjoyed every one of them as well.

Hope this helps... whatever you decide, have a great cruise!!
 
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kimmy

Guest
Thanks for your well thought out response. It was quite helpful.

I just booked the Serenade for my birthday cruise next year and the Enchantment for Sept to get me through until then.

Perhaps I will try Princess when I can find an itinerary that really appeals to me (I have not yet the Baltic route) and this way I won't be looking for the same things I do on a Caribbean sailing.
 
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BurBunny

Guest
One other thing to consider on Princess is that even during holiday periods, Princess limits the maximum number of children onboard. It keeps everything from being overwhelmed. I'm a late-30s single who prefers not too many children. Because the friend I was traveling with last year had to go on a school break, we chose Princess for Easter week. NO problems whatsoever. They were there, and other than some teen packs hanging out in the hallways (quietly) or at the pools, could hardly tell they had the maximum onboard. They limit by age range as well as overall number.
 
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ljeanbrown

Guest
DJA was right on with the discription of Princess. And I agree if you are looking for a night life as you mentioned you won't find it on Princess. Don't get me wrong I really enjoyed my cruise on the Grand last month but I am just being honest about the night life. With one exception the Grand had a great island night party.RCCL will be a better choice for you as far as the night life.



Laurie :wave
 
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