Sailing on: Majestic Princess, Auckland

Highlights

• Princess Medallion and App - My favourite feature with Princess is their medallion – This is a small device that replaces key cards and ensures a smoother cruising experience from automatically unlocking your cabin door as you approach to ordering Drinks or food directly to you anywhere on the ship. The device and lanyard are complimentary but there are additional accessories you can purchase such as a bracelet or necklace chain to customise your medallion.I really thought that the App was so well thought out and had lots of fun testing all the features. The navigation system that allows you to find  your friends and family onboard does need some work but It got me where I needed to be every time.

• Venues, Activities and Entertainment - Although the Majestic Princess is a large ship with 3560 guests it does not feel overwhelmingly busy at all. All the venues onboard are well spaced and even with popular events or activities the venue never felt over packed. My favourite Venue was the Princess Live where they held Karaoke and Quizzes and small concerts/shows throughout the day. There was always a band or activity going on in the piazza so I found that to be the most popular spot onboard, the Piazza stretches out over 3 levels with multiple bars surrounding the space as well as separate seating areas and a 24 hour international café.

• Dining Options - We did love all the different dining venues to try. The main sit down restaurant is split into 3 separate venues which makes dining feel a lot more intimate than one large dining room, Each venue had the same menu however they were all laid out differently with slightly different décor.  The “Buffet“ onboard is called the marketplace and offers a large variety of international food options.   There is also a separate buffet style venue just off the marketplace that has lighter sandwich and salad options for a lighter meal. We were only given 2 bread rolls each at the table but It was very easy and comfortable to ask for more.   There are also casual dining options where you do pay a small fee for either a set 3 course meal or can pay per meal – We had tried Alfredo’s Pizzeria where we got to watch the chefs make the best pizza we have ever had.

• Décor - I loved the simplicity of the Majestic Princess, she felt spacious, light and open with lots of beautiful art pieces or statues throughout the ship.  We sailed during Halloween and were blown away at all the effort they had gone through to decorate the ship.  The staff had dressed up and you could see there was a lot of effort put into their looks.  They had carved out hundreds of pumpkin lanterns which were on display throughout the ship.

• SeaWalk  -One aspect of the ship I was really excited to try was the Seawalk which is a walkway that extends nearly 30 feet over the edge of the ship up on the 16th deck and the glass floor that lets you look straight down to the ocean below.   There are no fees and no queues to experience the Seawalk .

• Movies Under The Stars - I always love to sit down and watch a good movie, but nothing beats laying under the stars under a cosy blanket and watching a movie at sea.  Staff also bring around snacks and you can also order anything right to where you are sitting through the Ocean Now app.

Top Tips

1. Purchase the Princess Plus:  This is a highly valuable Package which includes beverage packages, Wi-Fi packages, 2 casual dining options, free onboard delivery (OceanNow), 2 premium desserts per person per day and 2 fitness classes – At the time of booking this package is available as well as being able to upgrade and add this on before sailing and is heavily discounted compared to purchasing these packages or inclusions separately.  Not thinking of how much you are spending on drinks is a huge relief when on holiday, and having these packages included ensures you don’t need to worry too much about overspending

2. Future Cruise Desk:  If you are already dreaming of your next cruise before you have even ended your cruise, the future cruise team will be your best friend!  You are able to purchase Future Cruise Deposits (FCD) which is a reduced, fully refundable deposit of $100 per person that can be used to secure a future cruise.  If you have already found your next sailing the team will be able to book that for you onboard using the future cruise deposits and will automatically send your booking back to the travel agent you had booked through.  If you don’t have an option in mind you can hold onto those FCD until you have found your next Princess cruise.  You’ll have up to a year to book your cruise, if you don’t book during that time, we’ll automatically refund the FCD to the credit card used to purchase the deposit.

3. Sydney Airport Hint:  Our cruise ended in Sydney and we flew straight home to New Zealand, one top tip I have for Sydney transport is take the train if available.  It was extremely easy to walk from the ship to the train station, the train was fast and arrives inside the airport. You can also tap on and off of this train service using you credit or debit card so there is no need to purchase tickets.   This also works out to be way cheaper than buying a physical paper ticket.

4. Shore excursions:  Pre book shore excursions as these are limited, so to ensure you secure a spot on your desired excursion you can pre book and pay for these through the Cruise App.

5. Onboard Activities:  View available activities happening onboard through the Princess App – this is a easy way to book and set reminders to ensure you don’t forget about your favourite onboard activity.

6. The Shows:  See all the entertainment you can!  The shows onboard are brilliant and very popular, as the Theatre is not overly large it can fill up fast – Always best to get in early to get a good seat