Princess Cruise Lines - Best Cruise Ships 2019
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Best Cruise Line for 2019!

Travel Addicts is pleased to have selected its first-annual Best Cruise Line award for 2019.

It is no secret that Rick and I LOVE to cruise. We have taken many cruises, and after trying many different cruise lines, we decided to award Princess Cruises as our favorite!

Here are the criteria we looked at:

Exceptional Customer Service

We love the level of service on Princess. It’s attentive and friendly yet still genuine. One of my biggest pet peeves is fake friendliness. On Princess, I feel that everybody genuinely cares. I love the fact that the crew is trained to remember our names. I love when one of the crew members stops to chat with us – not because of a rule, but because they want too. That makes me feel like I am among friends. Some crew members and I have even become friends on Facebook, and we keep in touch. Whatever we asked, they did anything possible to accommodate, sometimes going way beyond we expected.

Great ships

Princess Cruise lines offer excellent ships, and it’s no wonder they are our favorite in 2019. They have a classic nautical feel without being too modern. The decor inside the cruise ships is tasteful. They are always very clean and very well maintained. The cabins are elegant and spacious. We tried almost all types of cabins, and we always felt that we have enough room to move around.

Best Ship

In Princess’ Fleet, our all-time favorite cruise ship is the Island Princess. It is the perfect sized boat, not too big to make it overwhelming and not too small to make it claustrophobic. It can host 2200 passengers and 900 crew, making it the perfect size to make lots of friends with fellow passengers.

Our runner up is the Regal Princess. The Regal is an entirely different kind of ship, much bigger than the Island but still very homey and inviting. The Regal offers a lot of innovative features (MedallionNet, Alfredo Pizzeria, the fountain show, the seawalk) that we loved.

Our third favorite ship is the Sapphire Princess. This ship is significant to us because we sailed on her to our first trip to Asia.

Island Princess - Best Cruise Ship at Huatulco Beach 2019
Island Princess at Huatulco Beach

Excellent food

Food on Princess is delicious. We love the variety of choices available in the main dining room. We also enjoy the specialty restaurants that we use when we want to have a date night. Our favorite dessert is Norman Love Pistachio Dome.

We discovered some clever tweaks on Princess menu, which we think are just fantastic. As an example, if we are in the mood for Indian food, we ask the head waiter at the main dining room. And then, 24 hours later, we are offered a spectacular Indian Feast!

If we’re in the mood for pizza, but we don’t want to get dressed up, we call room service, and order as much pizza as we wish. And it appears in our room for only $3.00!!!!  When we travel on a ship that has Alfredo Pizzeria we always go for dinner there. The chef makes the pizza to order in front of our eyes. Many passengers surprised to know that there is no cover charge for Alfredo’s.

Best Cruise Ship Dessert - Norman Love Pistachio Dome
Norman Love Pistachio Dome

Best Selection of Itineraries

We are the type of cruisers that love to explore new destinations. Princess has an incredible range of routes and destinations, making it the best cruise line in 2019 to explore. We prefer longer cruises with many ports and great destinations. We found that Princess has a route for almost any area in the world. Our most intimate journey so far was 19 nights from Hong Kong to Singapore, with stops in Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia. It was fantastic.

In my opinion, this is the very best way to explore such a vast area of the world in a short amount of time. And you don’t even have to pack and unpack daily! It’s one of the reasons why I love cruising! 

Our second most favorite itinerary was the Panama Canal from Vancouver BC. We did it on the Island Princess. And by the end of the journey, we had made so many new friends! We started in our home town, Vancouver. Then, we sailed down the West Coast to LA than continued to Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama than out in the Atlantic!  I think every cruiser should have the Panama Canal in their bucket list. It is an unforgivable experience.

Sapphire Princess Cruise - Best Cruise Ship in Singapore 2019
Sapphire Princess in Singapore

We Love to Dress Up!

Who doesn’t like to dress up a little once in a while? We love Princess formal nights as they are the perfect occasion to look at our best. On seven day cruises, there are usually two formal nights. Additionally, on longer itineraries, there can be 3 or 4 or more.

One of my favorite nights on the cruise ship is the champagne waterfall. It is a long time nautical tradition and much fun! The high-rank officers are there, and they are always more than happy to talk to passengers and to take photos.  The best formal night is The Captain’s Circle Party. And it’s THE party for Platinum and Elite passengers. It is by invitation, and it always makes me feel a bit special.

Rick and Andrea - Princess Cruises Formal Night

Best Loyalty Program

Princess’ Captain’s Circle loyalty program, in my opinion, is the best at sea.  At the time of booking, new cruisers get enrolled automatically. Reaching Platinum is quick, after only five cruises. Also, the cruise perks are desirable (at the Platinum level, you get free internet minutes, priority boarding and at the Elite level FREE LAUNDRY!!! As I mentioned before, at the Platinum level, you’ll start getting invited to the Party. It is the most fun evening, with an open bar, the possibility to mingle with the Captain and the senior Officers. Also, it’s an excellent excuse to look your best!

The Highest Grade Entertainment

Princess Cruises has some of the best entertainment available on a cruise line.

In the theatre, the shows are excellent and engaging. Our favorites are the comedians that often perform throughout the ship. During the day, there is never a dull moment. For example, there is always something going on. There are lots of deck parties, pool parties, and parties in the Piazza (the main area in midship). They are suited for a more mature and sophisticated crowd. [KGVID]https://www.traveladdictslife.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Pool-party.mov[/KGVID]

Another fun feature on every Princess Ship is the “Movies Under the Stars.” It is located nightly, by the main pool and a box office movie gets played.

The beach chairs get a comfortable memory foam upgrade. Further, there are blankets for chilly nights. Best of all, popcorns, ice cream, and cookies and provided free! It’s truly an excellent way for the whole family to spend an evening.

Lastly, there are often special guests on board who provide insight on the attractions and the transportation of each port of call.

These are the main reasons we awarded Princess Cruise lines as our best and favorite for 2019. There are many more reasons, but the very most important one is that we always feel we are back home among friends when we board a Princess Ship.

Bonus: Do you love Princess Cruises? Comment below and tell us what you love about them!

-Happy Cruising

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2 Comments

  1. We love Princess and Regal one of our faves. Panama Canal out of Vancouver definitely is on our bucket list! Thanks for the article – agree with you wholeheartedly Princess is the best!

  2. My favorite cruise was the South pacific RT from LA. 28 glorious days and the South Pacific is fantastic. Must put it on your bucket list

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