This review covers my first trip on the Majestic Princess, an older Royal-class ship built in 2017 and refreshed in early 2025. I sailed solo in a casino comped cabin on a 6-night Western Caribbean itinerary with stops in Costa Maya, Roatán, and Cozumel. This is one of my favorite itineraries for casino comps because of the low taxes and fees and my proximity to Port Everglades.
Princess continues to deliver solid value for casino comp cruisers and the Majestic Princess holds up well for players looking to relax and enjoy a quality experience without spending extra money on add-ons. If you’re looking for reasonable table minimums in the casino, good dining, and friendly service, the Majestic Princess is a strong option.
Port Everglades Embarkation and First Day
The boarding process in Fort Lauderdale was unlike one I had ever seen before. I typically show up at the port around 1 PM to avoid crowds and get on the ship quickly, but when I arrived, there was still a line out the door. Apparently there was an issue in the terminal and the whole boarding process was delayed. Some folks who had arrived early had been waiting for hours to board, so I was thankful that the line started moving by the time I arrived. Even so, I didn’t get on the ship until well after 2 PM.
The ship was crowded but I’m unsure if it was a sold-out sailing. I didn’t have any luck getting upgraded from my interior cabin, which wasn’t surprising since I only bid the minimum. I have found that interior cabins aren’t that bad if you are a solo traveler that can locate secluded outdoor areas.
The Majestic Princess has a typical Royal-class design, with a grand and glittering central piazza surrounded by shops and restaurants. After boarding, I quickly dropped my bags in my interior cabin and headed to the pool deck to grab some pizza. This is one of my favorite tricks to avoid the crowded buffet on embarkation day. I settled in to eat at the Hollywood Pool, a climate-controlled indoor pool that’s a unique feature of the Majestic Princess.
Majestic Princess Cabin Observations
The Majestic Princess shows its age a bit more than the Enchanted Princess, which was the last Princess ship I sailed on. The cabin design feels a bit tired, the furniture is nicked up, and there were some stains on the carpet. This is all to be expected on a ship nearing its 10th anniversary, but it’s something to be prepared for if you’re used to newer vessels.
When I took a detailed look around the cabin, I noted a fair amount of dirt and hair on the carpet, so I asked housekeeping to re-vacuum. This is not the first time I’ve had to ask for this, so I can’t help but wonder how carefully Princess is actually cleaning the cabins between sailings. After the additional vacuuming, the cabin floor was noticeably cleaner, which doesn’t speak highly of the standard service. But I was happy that my request was quickly resolved.
One thing I’ve learned from my many interior cabin cruises: bring a sunrise alarm clock. The gradual light simulation in the morning makes waking up in a pitch-black room much more bearable. I also found that on the Majestic Princess my inside cabin was a bit stuffy and lacked strong air circulation. This typically isn’t something that bothers me, but if I sail this ship again, I’ll remember to bring a portable fan. You can watch my 90 second speed review of the entire cabin by clicking here.
Majestic Princess Casino
The casino layout on the Majestic Princess was essentially a carbon copy of the Enchanted Princess. Tables and slots were arranged similarly in the larger smoking section, with a handful of slots in the non-smoking casino next door. Table games are located in the central area of the smoking casino, so keep that in mind if you’re sensitive to smells.
I like to hit the craps table early on my first night to check out the vibe and crowds. I was happy to see several familiar faces on this trip, both passengers and crew. The craps table minimum on the Majestic Princess is $10. That beats the $15 I saw on the Enchanted Princess. Majestic Princess also runs regular craps—no crapless format. Great news for me and the hybrid strategy I enjoy playing.
My first night at the table went very well. Lots of long rolls and good energy from the players. I played about 2 hours and secured a little over 1500 points. My second night wasn’t as successful and I made some careless errors, causing me to give back some winnings. After that, I basically stopped playing table games because I’d hit my points goal for the trip.
I played slots for a short time to get the extra few points I needed for an interior cabin offer for my next cruise. One interesting note about the casino on the Majestic Princess is that they have an entire bank of Casino Wizard games. I’ve always been intrigued by these games, as they let you play table games like craps and blackjack with consistent ratings like slots or video poker.
Unfortunately, I quickly discovered why these machines sat empty for the majority of the trip. The payouts are horrendous. For example, on the Casino Wizard craps games, pass and don’t pass bets only pay 92 cents on the dollar instead of the standard one-to-one. That means you’re getting paid 8% less than you should be. It makes no sense to give up that much house edge to earn consistent points by playing those games. It seems like the majority of passengers knew this as well.
I didn’t interact much with the casino hosts. They were present but seemed distracted most of the time. I’m guessing that’s because my sailing was a Hearts cruise, an exclusive casino players’ cruise with special perks and events. The hosts were probably focused on players who were more valuable than I was.
Majestic Princess Dining
I stuck to complimentary dining on this trip—no specialty restaurants, no extra charges. I ate one lunch and three dinners in the main dining room. The food quality in the dining room felt like a step down from what I’d come to expect from Princess. Service was slower too. That doesn’t mean the food was bad, in fact, I still believe Princess has some of the best food at sea. Perhaps I just ordered the wrong items this time around.
One thing to note is that this was the first cruise for the Majestic Princess after a repositioning, and many other passengers had voiced similar concerns with the dining room. The theory going around was that it was a new crew still getting into the flow of things. That made sense because service was noticeably better toward the end of the cruise than it was at the beginning.
The buffet experience on the Majestic Princess was solid. It’s well organized with plenty of variety, including cook-to-order and self-serve options. Food quality was good, and I was happy with what I ate. They still haven’t changed the terrible pre-mixed orange juice, but the freshly made fruit and vegetable smoothies at breakfast are excellent. Highly recommended.
I ordered breakfast room service a couple of times. It came right on time, and the quality was good. My advice is to stick with fruits and baked goods instead of hot dishes like the breakfast sandwich, which will often arrive cold.
Western Caribbean Port Experiences
I spent some time walking around Costa Maya and Roatán. There’s not much to see outside the Costa Maya port itself—just a couple of roadside stands where you can pick up a cheap beer. My advice for Costa Maya is to pay the $5 and take a taxi to Mahahual where there’s actually stuff to do.
Roatán is a typical cruise port with all the overpriced shops you’d expect. There is a beach area and a nature walk exclusive to cruise passengers, which is nice but can get crowded depending on how many ships are in port.
An unfortunate downside to some of these Caribbean cruise ports is that there is very little to do or see if you’re trying to keep costs low or stay within walking distance. Most require a paid excursion or taxi ride into town.
Majestic Princess Features Worth Noting
One feature I really enjoyed on the Majestic Princess is the Hollywood Conservatory—a quiet public area on deck 17 at the front of the ship. There is also a covered pool in this area that’s available to everyone. Princess has yet to convert this into a paid Sanctuary space, which is a nice touch. Unfortunately, this also means there is no adults-only pool on the ship.
One other feature I enjoyed was the many signs around the ship that were still in Chinese, a nod to the fact that this ship was originally built for the Chinese market. Some of the venues still bear their original names, like the “Vista Gaming Lounge” or “VIP Casino”.
Final Thoughts on the Majestic Princess
The Majestic Princess is an older ship, and it shows. But it still delivers what matters for comp cruisers: good food, decent entertainment, and a lively casino with a good variety of games and reasonable minimums.
Strengths:
- Low craps table minimums
- Good food and service in dining venues
- Hollywood Conservatory is a nice public space
Areas for Improvement:
- Room cleanliness
- No adults-only pool
- Better Casino Wizard payouts
Would I sail the Majestic Princess again? Probably not. And that’s purely because I prefer newer ships. The Majestic Princess is just too old for me at this point. But if you like Royal-class ships and don’t mind an older vessel, it’s perfectly serviceable. Just keep realistic expectations about the condition when you book your trip.
