California Coastal cruise - Crown Princess

For those of us close to the West Coast, Princess offers some great seasonal cruises. Princess has a few ships on the west coast waiting for the summer season to Alaska. In April and May, you can find these relaxing, unique itineraries along the California Coast. This was a 7-night, round-trip cruise out of LA. Ports visited: San Francisco, Santa Barbara, San Diego and Ensenada.

See photos and cruise tips below.
 

California Coastal Cruise - Crown Princess

Cruise Review & Photos

April 2014

There are 10 Tips for this cruise... find all 10, read them & get more cruise fun for your money!

We took a very simple and relaxing cruise on the Crown Princess. This is a seasonal itinerary out of Los Angeles in April and May. It was 7-nights and included the ports of San Francisco, Santa Barbara, San Diego and Ensenada. Onboard the ship, the Princess crew did an amazing job for us. We loved this stress-free California Coastal cruise!

Pictured above is Janean at one of our favorite ports - San Diego.

EMBARKATION:

Here is a photo of the Crown Princess before embarkation at LA. The LA cruise terminal is horrible. We wish the West Coast cruise lines would drop this port and depart from San Diego or San Francisco. If weather is rainy - bring an umbrella. If it is hot and sunny, bring sunscreen and cool clothing. Both because you often have to wait outside - no inside access early before the cruise. Princess ground staff was also not very friendly. Embarkation was a pain - thankfully that was the only complaint on this cruise. Princess: Please drop the LA Cruise Terminal - it is terrible!!. We were thrilled to get onboard - a little sunburned after waiting 3+ hours outdoors at the LA Cruise Terminal to board.

TIP 1: If you have to cruise out of LA, bring sunscreen and if it could rain, bring an umbrella. You may have to wait outside the cruise terminal if boarding starts late. Another tip - If you have a choice of a cruise out of LA versus San Diego or San Francisco - skip LA! The LA cruise terminal at San Pedro is horrible.

TIP 2: If you board a Princess Cruise early, sneak up to the Sanctuary on the top deck (Deck 17 - forward on the Crown Princess). Princess charges extra for this private haven, but you can do a free test-drive before the ship sails on boarding day. We were going to test-drive the Sanctuary, but Princess has just doubled the price ($20 for half day, $40 for full day). We opted instead for the private heat therapy package at the Lotus spa which we thoroughly enjoyed.

The Crown Princess (and Grand Princess category ships) have heated tile beds in the Lotus Spa. We paid $109 for both of us for full access to the Spa - well worth the prices! We used the heated beds, private hot tub and 4 different saunas every day but one on this cruise.

TIP 3: When you take this cruise - consider the full-cruise Lotus Spa heat therapy package - well worth the price for us and for those fellow cruisers we met in this private spa.

SAN FRANCISCO: Our first port was San Francisco. We sailed under the Golden Gate bridge just after 6 am. We were in port by 6:30 am. You will dock at Pier 35 in San Francisco.

TIP 4: If your itinerary includes San Francisco, get up early for a view like this one as you sail under the Golden Gate Bridge - very cool!

TIP 5: You will dock at Pier 35 in San Francisco. You can walk off the ship and find plenty to do at the pier. Just south of the ship is shopping and you will always find sea lions fighting for space on the docks. If you are up for a walk of about 2 miles - just north of Pier 35 where you dock is a Farmer's Market style shopping plaza at Pier 2. There are lots of unique, local gift stores and no sales tax on any purchases there. You can even hire a pedi-cab if you don't want to walk.

TIP 6: If you visit San Francisco in April - don't trust a sunny morning! I wore shorts off the ship with early sunshine. A few hours later, I bought a San Francisco jacket because I was freezing. Locals say if you see someone in shorts in San Francisco in April - they are a tourist. Plan on quick changes in weather in San Francisco.

SANTA BARBARA: Our second port and our favorite on this cruise was Santa Barbara. The cruise lines are slowly adding Santa Barbara as a port to replace Mazatlan or other ports losing favor on Mexico's west coast. Santa Barbara is a very nice addition to the west coast port options! Visit if you get a chance! Here is a photo from the Santa Barbara pier looking out to the Crown Princess. I'm too smitten by my beautiful wife Janean to notice the ship in the background...

TOP TIP FOR THIS CRUISE -- TIP7 : If you get to Santa Barbara - you will have lots of shore excursion options. Just toss the list and plan on a Segway Tour. You can book on the cruise ship or book directly with these guys. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!! http://segwayofsb.com/

We did a 3 hour tour of Santa Barbara on segways. We covered over 20 miles and hit highlights on this amazing tour. Pictured above are Janean, Iver (our personal guide) Jerry (owner of Segway Tours of Santa Barbara) and Dan.

On the hilltop above Santa Barbara - you get a great view of the coast. You can see the Crown Princess in the bay over our shoulders.

LANDMARK BELOW: This is the famous Moreton Bay Fig Tree. It is the largest Fig tree in the U.S. A seaman, visiting Santa Barbara In 1876, presented a seedling of an Australian Moreton Bay Fig tree to a local girl who planted it. The tree was officially designated as a historic landmark in 1970, and the property was deeded to the City of Santa Barbara in 1976. The tree has since been placed on the California Register of Big Trees. The roots are protected by a chain barrier the size of the canopy. The circumference is 41.5 feet - average crown spread is 176 feet and the total height is 80 feet.

San Diego: San Diego is one of our favorite ports. We wish the cruise linies would dump LA and just cruise out of San Diego. The port and cruise terminal at San Diego are so much better &stress-free.. LA is stressful. The overall cruise experience would be exceptional out of San Diego instead of LA - West Coast cruise lines - please listen to your passengers!! LA is horrible. San Diego is lovely!

Ensenada: What a difference we found at Ensenada - this port is dramatically improved!! Fun shopping, great food and a friendly atmosphere. Ensenada is worth a visit now!

TIP 8: The Customs office may not like this suggestion. But if you get to Ensenada... your prescription drugs are likely to be cheaper. We like to buy anti-biotics when we visit Mexico. Lots of prescriptions are available without the doctor note. Just ask if you are interested... pharmacies abound in Ensenada.

Fresh seafood in Ensenada - AMAZING!!!.

TIP 9: My Time Dining is interesting... just not as good as the traditional dining option. On My Time Dining, you will add stress & uncertainty to your cruise. Be smart & commit - pick the traditional dining - either early or late and get to know your fellow cruisers. We had My Time for 1 night, then switched to traditional dining. Your cruise will be better when you share dinner with friends you get to know on the cruise. We met 6 amazing people on this cruise.

We met Harry & JoJo from Oklahoma in photo below.

We loved these smiles - Charlene & Annie from Surprise, Arizona, in phtoo below.

And Clair & Cindy from Colorado in photo below.

TIP 10: Go to the Chef & Maitre 'd cooking show. You will get a fun, free and a free tour of the ship's galley after the show.

Bottom line... in April/May this is a great cruse option for those of us on the west coast. Take this cruise!!