KLM3164

@Strauss1020 According to this article, Spellbound is open to guests 13 and above so you will be able to get non-alcoholic drinks. I’d also venture to guess they will have some “magical” effect non-alcoholic drinks for kids and those who don’t want to drink alcohol. I would expect you will still pay $149 for the experience with alcohol or without based on what others have said about the 360 experience which is the same price. 

www.cruisecritic.com/articles/magic-castle-spellbound-sun-princess

13 minutes ago, QuilterGirl said:

@lizwil10, there are four obstructed-view mini-suites on the Royal/Regal class ships.  They are the far forward/side ones on the Lido and Marina decks: L107, L108, M107, and M108.  They constitute the least-expensive mini-suite category, M6.  They are called "obstructed view" because the "glass fence" (railing) found on other balcony cabins, is instead made of solid sheet metal - so it can't be seen through.  Of course, you can see over it if you are standing, or if you are sitting on two stacked chairs, or use furniture risers under a chair. On the positive side, these balconies are HUGE. 

 

But:  they can get a lot of wind, and there isn't much protection against rain or wind, so that must be taken into consideration. Because they are high up and very forward, folks prone to motion sickness may not want these cabins. And because  they are very far forward, it's a long walk to almost everything.  Although there are signs saying the balcony door will be locked at night, it is actually entirely up to you when to lock the door or use the balcony.  You are requested to have your draperies shut at night so as to not be bothersome to the bridge.

 

Some folks love these cabins; others not so much.  You might look up some YouTube videos about these cabins; there are several. 

We are a huge fan of these cabins which we affectionately call the Fab 4. They are listed as “obstructed view” but we don’t mind the steel railing. We will book these cabins every time if they are available plus they include Reserve dining.

@lizwil10 If you booked a guaranteed mini-suite I don’t think you will get one of these cabins as they are actually a higher category because they are Reserve Mini-Suites. It sounds like you booked a regular mini-suite which would mean you’d get a cabin category of MA-MF which don’t have Reserve dining and AFAIK don’t have any obstructed views.

3 hours ago, dides said:

Signature gets an additional Prime Rib on the Carving Trolley

Yes, the elusive prime rib trolley that no one on Princess knows anything about! 🤣 

@CanadianBurger Whatever it is it looks yummy!!!

@Steelers36 One of the videos which shows the retractable clothes line at the 6:07 mark.

49 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

On another thread, someone new to PCL was asking about clothes line (i.e. the retractable ones in the shower stalls).  Anyone know if Princess has installed those in the Sun cabins?

I’ve seen them on a couple of the videos I’ve watched for the Sun Princess cabins but don’t remember which videos and whether they were on CC or YT. But the bottom line is yes they have them on the Sun.

3 hours ago, CanadianBurger said:

The MDR dining room menu is in the app,

so here’s tonight’s. You can compare it to the Reserve when I post it later. 

Thanks for posting the MDR menu for tonight. I’m looking forward to comparing it to the Reserve menu when posted. If it’s not too much to ask, would you be able to go by the Signature Restaurant and take photos of their menu tonight so everyone can see the difference between the 3 menus for the same evening?

1 hour ago, startedwithamouse said:

Tableside preparations should be left to Lawry's.

100%

17 minutes ago, lennythenose said:

I didn’t ask my question right. I know we can go anywhere, my question is if we do eat lunch or dinner in the Signature can we go to the American diner later that same day for dessert or snack. 

Yes you can. We frequently eat dinner in Reserve Class and skip dessert. We sometimes go to the show and then go back to the dining room and get dessert later in the evening. 

2 hours ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

All of the money that they save on cheese will have to go towards cleaning the passengers clothing. What a mess! 

I was thinking the same thing! Princess is going to be dry cleaning a lot of their passengers clothes after the soup shower.

4 hours ago, CanadianBurger said:

I’m putting the “new take” of the French onion soup in its own post because it’s so bad. Epic fail. The bowl comes with a piece of bread with a bit of cheese. Then the soup gets glopped on top. What a hot mess. All the soups on the Sun are now served at the table in a small pitcher poured into the bowl.

Oh my that is wrong on so many levels. C’mon PRINCESS this is not how you do French Onion Soup!!!

3 hours ago, dides said:

Crown Grill menus (credit: Phaedra L)

 

 

 

 

I’m disappointed to see the shrimp entree has been removed from the CG menu.

16 minutes ago, MsSoCalCruiser said:

All these cruises, and I have never realized that you are facing forward when you exit the elevators. Thank you! 

I learned this fact from Corinne Steel who is the Cruise Director on the Sun Princess.

2 minutes ago, CanadianBurger said:

Hey Princess! There’s something you need to fix! 
 

Some elevator lobbies have the signs with the deck plans in the proper orientation, so regardless of which side you look at, you can tell which way is forward, and which way is aft. Video #1. 
 

But on some decks (looking at you, 9 mid) one side points one way and the other points the opposite way. Video #2. Which is which? Who knows! Man, I feel like a newbie figuring out which way to go on this ship sometimes. 

 

 

 

 

 

Ughh elevators on both sides. I’m going to miss my Royal class ships where the elevators (except the glass ones) all open up so when you exit you are facing toward the front of the ship. That’s how I always know which way I need to go based on the elevator doors opening. I think I’m going to be completely lost on the Sun Princess!

2 hours ago, CanadianBurger said:

 

 

 

Great video! I see our cabin on the port side of the ship. Thank you!!!

1 hour ago, Steelers36 said:

Just asked if my post can be deleted

How do you request to have one of your posts deleted?

1 hour ago, Steelers36 said:

No such thing on Princess.  Did you mean BC - a regular Balcony with sub-category C?

The Sun Princess has different cabin categories than other ships. CB is a Cabana Mini Suite and category BC doesn’t exist on Sun Princess. Balcony cabins now begin with a D.

1 hour ago, CanadianBurger said:

Question for readers: are the videos coming through okay on your end? They just spin if I click on one. 

Yes. I can see your videos. Thank you for all the content you are posting!

1 hour ago, azbirdmom said:

And I will really miss the Fettucine Alfredo as well as the various souffles.

Yes! I’m also going to miss the French Onion soup!!!

9 hours ago, niftrip said:

 

I didn't see the cart. I'll look for it tonight. 

The prime rib cart I heard about may only be for the Signature restaurant. 

1 hour ago, CanadianBurger said:

Fancy gold-rimmed cut-glass glasses at Crooners.

Very nice!!!

1 hour ago, CanadianBurger said:

Reserve Dining Room Dinner. The salmon and my filet were cooked perfectly. They have special plates for beef apparently. We didn’t stay for dessert tonight. 

Thanks for the photos of the menu and the food. Did they have an extra entrée for Reserve Collection that wasn’t on the menu?

4 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

On the second leg of our recent Antarctica/SA B2B, there we maybe 3 couples eating in the Reserve DR until 6 pm at the earliest. However, it was packed around 8:30 pm on because there were quite a few guests onboard from Chile that were used to eating dinner after 9 pm when they were back home.

 

From what I remember, it was also the same way on our Med cruise on the Regal back in July 2022. It could be that a lot of the guests on this Med cruise are used to eating late as well. To be honest it was nice showing up at 5 pm with no competition for getting our different courses delivered and we were usually finished before 6 pm. 😁

We have only eaten in Reserve on Caribbean and Mexico sailings and we also eat between 5-6 when the dining room has always been slow. Our next Reserve is in the Caribbean so hoping it’s a similar pattern where it’s slow between 5 and 6. 

I think you are right about the eating patterns on European cruises as many people are accustomed to eating much later over the pond.

1 hour ago, niftrip said:

The Reserve Collection Dinning has been busy all night. I walked by a number of times earlier with lines each time.

This is not good news! One of the advantages of having Reserve Collection is not having to wait for a table. We’ve had this on several cruises on Royal Class ships and the dining room has never been full. 

Did you eat in the Reserve Collection Dining room last night? If so, did they have the prime rib cart? Asking for DH.

@CanadianBurger Thank you for taking us along on your cruise! I’m loving your photos and videos!

We are in a Reserve Mini-Suite in November and have a couple questions if you are able to answer. Do they have the prime rib cart in the Reserve restaurant at dinner? On the deck plan for your cabin does it indicate “bed by entrance” or “sofa by entrance”?

Enjoy your cruise and thanks again for all your information so far!!!

Thanks for your Live report. Enjoy your cruise!!!