From time to time I love to add a thorough unbiased review from some of my followers. Peter has done a few now and here is his next one. If you have a review that you would like to have posted. Let me know and we can get it up. Vickie
7 day Norwegian Fjords Cruise from Southampton on Crown Princess starting 1st July 2017
Ship in General:
This is the first time we have sailed on the Crown Princess, but we felt right at home, because it is almost identical to the Ruby and the Emerald Princess, both of which we love.
The ship is looking in good shape and we had no complaints. Our favourite area, outside Sabatini’s on the aft terrace, has some new rattan style furniture with both single chairs and two seaters as well as low tables. Our only disappointment was that half this area is given over to smokers and the smoke still drifts over even if you are sitting at the furthest point away.
Cabin:
We opted for an inside cabin and when we booked there was little choice. We selected R207, which was forward on the starboard side, only 2 or 3 cabins from the end. We noticed that some cabins around us had been reserved for Pilots. While navigating the fjords, some Pilots seem to stay on board for more than 1 port. We never saw any of them though.
The cabin was nice enough with plenty of space. As usual, we moved the little table to the wardrobe area to give us more room. We have never been this far forward before, but we did not notice any real difference to previous cruises. There was some vibration from the thrusters when docking, but nothing we have not experienced before.
Our favourite place on the Aft Terrace
Our Steward was Rudy and he was friendly and up to the usual Princess standard. We discovered that he had been on the Ruby Princess for our Hawaii cruise last year and he knew our Steward from that trip. Extra hangers were requested and delivered promptly, but Robes were not available until the following day.
The ship did not have the new Princess beds, but it already had a pillow top added to the mattress, so it was quite comfortable.
Dining/Food:
We had no complaints about the food and found it to be very good. On the first day we had lunch in the Botticelli Dining Room, which is hidden away on deck 6 at the aft of the ship. It was not advertised anywhere that this dining room was open. The information given out was that passengers could eat in the buffet on in the International café. Knowing a dining room was usually open, we asked a member of staff and found out that way. One of the waiters had a little joke on my wife. At the end of the meal she asked for decaf when requesting coffee. Another waiter then came over and said “I’m here”. My wife looked puzzled and he said “You wanted decaf…well decaf is my middle name”. It is so nice when the waiters are having a little fun, it gets you into the holiday mood.
We opted for Anytime dining and usually went to dinner around 6pm. Almost every day we were able to request a table for 2 and got it straight away. Every evening they checked our cruise card to make sure we were Anytime diners, which I have never seen before. The only night we decided to share was when they told us a table for 2 would be 1 hour. We can only guess that more people were eating early because a Freddie Mercury tribute act was on at 8pm and he was very popular. The service on our table for 6 was very slow. The waiter seemed to have a lot more tables to serve than usual. It got so late that we skipped dessert so we could get to the show. One reason for the delay was that one couple ordered 4 courses, when the rest of us only ordered 3 and we had to wait for them to finish their extra course. I cannot blame them and they did turn out to be the most travelled couple, so they deserved to take their time.
We dined in Crown Grill on the second formal night because we did not want to dress up. The food and service was great. Jacky was disappointed that we did not get a seat with a sea view, but when I pointed out that we had been looking at stunning views all week and we were now about to be served a great meal, she smiled and said “Yeah, I suppose you are right”.
I am not a great fan of Italian night in the dining room, so when we realised that was on, we decided to try out the Salty Dog Gastropub. Well to say it was a mixed review is an understatement. We both liked the breadstick starter with 2 fondue dips, although we could not detect any difference between the dips. For the main courses, I picked the Ernesto Burger and the Spicy Stout Beef Short Ribs. Jacky picked the Calamari Frites and the Lobster Mac & Cheese. I hated both my dishes and Jacky loved hers. The burger, to me, was tasteless and the Trident Grill option was much more to my liking. The ribs were chewy and not very pleasant. For dessert we ordered the Chocolate Pot De Crème and the Lemon Posset and both enjoyed our choices. The conclusion was that Jacky would be happy to eat there again, whereas I would be reluctant.
The evening we sailed out of Skjolden, we stayed in our favourite seats on the aft terrace and picked up our evening meal from the buffet. We then sat eating while the stunning view of the fjord unfolded on both sides of the ship.
Apart from on disembarkation day, we opted for room service breakfast each day and used the Princess at Sea app to order it. This was very simple once we found where the breakfast order section was. It was not in an obvious place as far as I am concerned, but we got there in the end. The orders arrived correct and on time every day.
Itinerary:
Sea conditions and the weather were, for the most part, fantastic. Sailaway from Southampton was in glorious sunshine, but we have done this so many times that we went off to dinner before we had even reached the Isle of Wight.
Dover Castle and White Cliffs
At between 6am and 7am on the following morning, the Captain woke us up with an announcement that was piped all around the ship, including the cabins. He said that we might have noticed the White Cliffs of Dover on our starboard side. This was because we had turned around in the night and were heading for Dover to disembark a medical emergency. We arrived later that morning, but were not allowed off the ship. After a stay of between 1 and 2 hours, we set sail again for Stavanger. No announcement was made, but we later heard a rumour that someone had fallen in the shower and suffered a fractured vertebra in their neck. That might account for why we had to turn around rather than have the casualty airlifted off.
Later in the day the Captain advised that due to the delay and strong headwinds, we would not now make it to Stavanger. Instead we would have an extra day at sea. We were delighted by this, as we love to relax on sea days and we had been to Stavanger twice before. We did feel sorry for those on their first trip to Stavanger though.
Skjolden
Skjolden – This port was new to us and it provided some stunning views from the ship and while on land. The sun was shining and the temperature was warm. We took the 15 minute walk into town and picked up a walking map from the tourist office. We hiked for around 30 minutes to get to a viewpoint overlooking the town and fjord. It was well worth it and we got some great pictures. We then went back into town and headed out towards a waterfall.
Skjolden from the viewpoint
Skjolden - the town viewed from the ship
This was about a 45 minute hike along the road. It gave us some great exercise, but the view of the waterfall was probably not worth the effort compared to our hike up to the viewpoint. We walked back to the ship for some lunch then sat on the aft terrace for the rest of the day relaxing before bringing dinner back from the buffet as we sailed out of the fjord. Skjolden is lovely and, if you are reasonably fit, you don’t have to take a tour to see the beauty of the area.
Olden - the view from Mount Hauron
Olden - We had been here a couple of times before and we love the area. Last time we visited the glacier and then hiked up Mount Hauron, but this proved too much for Jacky and she did not make it to the top. This time we just wanted to hike up the mountain and both make it. Another ship was docked, so we had to tender ashore. The wait for the tender was about 20 to 30 minutes and we got ashore around 10am. We picked up a map from the tourist office, but the route was shown from Olden itself, which was 20 minutes in the wrong direction. We knew roughly what the route was and set off following our noses. We soon came across some signs to Mount Hauron and these guided us from here on.
Olden - another view from Mount Hauron
The hike takes about 3 hours there and back and is quite steep and rocky towards the end. The views from the top are worth it though. We wandered around the top and came across a little cabin that would make a secluded little hideaway, similar to the cabins you find in Alaska out in the wilderness.
Olden - the cabin at the top of the mountain
The weather was warm and humid, which made the hike quite demanding. You need to be reasonably fit to make this trek. Once we got back to the ship we headed for the aft terrace again and had lunch. We sat there for the rest of the day and for the start of the sailaway before heading off to change for dinner.
Bergen - the view from the bandstand
Bergen - It was a short stay in port and we were needed back on board by lunchtime. On our last visit we did the usual tourist thing of travelling up to the viewpoint overlooking the port by funicular. This time we just wandered around Bergen and the fish market before going further into town to buy some gifts. The weather again was warm and sunny. Once back on board, we took up our usual position on the aft terrace for lunch and to watched our departure from Bergen.
Bergen - the lake and fountain in the town centre
The final sea day was also blessed with good weather and we sat out on deck most of the day reading and relaxing. The whole trip was fantastic with some great views that can only be matched by places we have seen in Alaska.
Bergen - final sailaway and heading home
Embarkation and Disembarkation:
We sailed from the Mayflower terminal at Southampton and arrived between 11am and 11.30am. There was no queue at the preferred check in line and we walked straight up to get our cruise cards. We expected to be directed to a lounge, but we were told we can get straight on the ship. This was the fastest embarkation we have ever experienced.
The disembarkation at Southampton was also smooth and ran an hour ahead of schedule. We were off and away much earlier than anticipated. We were sad to leave but pleased with the efficiency.
Our next cruise is a 2 day mini cruise on P&O in December, where we are introducing our son and his wife to cruising. The main reason we booked it though is that it will give us enough cruise credits to become Elite for our next main cruise in March 2018. That is on Golden Princess sailing from Melbourne, Australia to Singapore. Bring on the free mini bar and free laundry.
