u/KaiserSoze1793 — reddlx

Hi there! We haven't cruised in a long time and it was when our kids were littles on Carnival. We generally like to do nice All Inclusives or VRBOs but thought it would be fun to try cruising again. I try to do as much research as I can but appreciate any advice, we have never been on Princess. Wife and I are in our 50's and we are bringing our 2 sons who are 19 and 22 who will be in a different room nearby. Sorry this is a little long!

We want to feel like it's as stress free of a trip as possible so we are going to get the Premier package so we can eat where we want, drink what we want, and have the reserved seating if we want to go to a show. Wife also loves pics. Seems like a solid value.
Ports look ok (Princess Cay, St Thomas, San Juan) but nothing too exciting. We have spent a lot of time in the Bahamas and have been to St Thomas and San Juan before so we may do a few activities but may not even get off the ship at one or the ports. That's also part of why we were looking at the Premier. We don't mind some crowds but don't like being overwhelmed by crowds all the time so trying to manage that. Princess Cay looks pretty crowded outside of the island to the right or getting a bungalow so considering doing one of those 2. Looks like you are too far to really explore Eleuthera from there if you get a taxi. We have spent time on the other side of that island before and it was fun but not sure how it might work out from there so probably not going to try.
Saw some posts with staffing concerns but not sure if they will have that resolved by July, no way to know I guess. Don't need to be super catered to but nice to be able to not be waiting forever for everything too.
It looks like there are some nice quiet areas on the ship in the Adults only section and the Sanctuary area (for a fee). Appreciate any perspectives on those.
Currently the ship has some decent prices and looks to have availability which was a plus both in price and hopefully not too crowded. I know things can change but it's only a couple months out. Hoping that helps with the crowd/service issues but know it's a crapshoot.
How do people treat formal night? I don't mind getting dressed up some but it's going to be July in the Caribbean as well so not super excited about wearing a lot of pants and especially jackets to more than a few meals. Do people tend to go more casual that time of year in the Caribbean or should we just plan to dress for dinner and change?
I see there is a smoking area, I assume it's ok to go and smoke a cigar there with a glass of bourbon?
The price of an interior vs a balcony are negligible so we plan to do balconies. Considering getting an Aft Premium Deluxe Balcony for my wife and I but it's about $750 more. Not sure if that's worth it but the balcony is larger with a nice view. thinking a middle deck that's hopefully quiet. Is room service generally pretty fast and good or is it a "order and you will get your food and a drink in an hour cold and the drink watered down" situation typically. Will they bring you a bottle of wine to your room or multiple glasses since we are Premier? If you are Aft like that are you going to have to go a really long way to get to things or is it not too bad, looks like a good sized boat but not ridiculously large.