Before coming on this trip, my boyfriend and I read the reviews of the Caribbean Princess on this site. After returning from our week long trip there, we both agree that while the Caribbean Princess does not deserve a 5/5 rave, the reviews that gave the resort a 1/5 and warned to never set foot on the property are fear-mongering and equally as inaccurate. We found that many of the people who were complaining the week that we were there were mostly upset about their travel agent's failure to warn them about Spring Break, and were letting their frustration with the younger crowd infuse their perception of everything else. If you plan on coming to Cancun during February or March, Spring Break partiers are a fixture of most resorts. That being said, the Caribbean Princess was considerably quieter than some of the Hotel Zone resorts, as it is significantly smaller and off the beaten track. The staff was also incredibly accommodating when it came to moving couples to a quieter area.
Here are a couple of points that we felt were worth passing on:
1. The Caribbean Princess is NOT beach-front, and when they say that the beach is 5 minutes away, they mean 5 minutes by a shuttle that runs once at 10 am and once again at 3 pm. As a vacationer at the Caribbean Princess, you are allowed access to a gorgeous beach club, but it is NOT all-inclusive there, you cannot bring your own food or water, and swimming in the ocean is contingent on how calm the waves are (literally - they rope off the stairs to the beach if the waves are too rough). However, there is a public beach right beside the beach club, and while it was quite populated when we were there, it's still a great alternative.
2. "Non-motorized water sports" basically means swimming in the pool and kayaking in a lagoon that has crocodiles.
3. The food was definitely more than tolerable. I consider myself a fairly picky eater, and I was able to find something to fill me up every day. What no one tells you however (and we unfortunately didn't discover until the last day) is that there is an a la carte menu available every day besides Thursdays and Saturdays. All you have to do is ask for it. The food is prepared fresh, and is quite delicious.
4. Tips really do go a long way. We tipped the pool bartender 20 pesos (roughly $2 US) on our second day and were treated like kings for the rest of the week. The service overall was good, but the front desk staff isn't always that helpful (or even looking like they are willing to help you) - But generally speaking, our trip rep was able to make up the difference.
5. We found the hotel to be very clean and we both loved our room. It has a lot of character, and was very spacious. The bed was quite hard, but after the first couple of nights, neither of really noticed it anymore. We did bring our own sheets (after reading some of the reviews that warned of stains), and while the sheets on the bed were very clean, I think we were both grateful to have something a bit more comfortable. The hotel property in general could use a definite face lift (some areas of it look downright abandoned - The "gym" is now a running joke between us), but overall, it's perfectly fine.
6. We didn't take advantage of any of the bar trips at night, but we heard from others that they were very well organized and there was something to do every night. There was no disco on the resort however, so if you're looking to party and not pay extra to do it (these trips are roughly $40 US each, but include cover and open bar), this is not the resort for you.
Overall - We had a great time, and while I'm not sure we would stay there again, we definitely do not regret our decision to go in the first place. It was great for the price, but it IS a three star resort. How good your trip is is up to you - but that's true of even a five star.