capriccio

3 minutes ago, SuiteSunrise said:

It looks like the mini suites and balcony suites still go to the Reserve Dining room. But I could be wrong. 

I hope you are right but on the new Signature Collection web page (https://www.princess.com/en-us/ships-and-experience/onboard-experience/sanctuary-collection) it states

3 minutes ago, SuiteSunrise said:

But if you already have the Plus package, what additional are you getting other than more people in the Signature Lounge and Sanctuary!!!

True and don't forget the additional passengers in the Signature Restaurant.

The pricing has gone up incredibly.  We have an S9 booked with the plus package for two for just less than $5000.  As of today, it is over $8000 with the addition of the premium package and more crowded venues. 

Luckily we have months to go before final payment.  We have done the MSC Yacht Club twice and their perks (including unlimited premium booze) and spaces designed to accommodate the number of cabins remains our favorite for service and value.  We may still take the Sun cruise but I can't see doing any repeats in a suite.

See post #377 about today's announcement about the Signature Collection that answers some of what we are seeing.

47 minutes ago, SuiteSunrise said:

What just happened!!! Looks like now alot more room choices have the Sanctuary, Lounge and Signature dining room. The price on our Penthouse Suite now called Vista Suite went from $17,343 Cdn to $24,000!!! What happens with existing bookings???

I don't notice any more cabins when picking a category, just a renaming of the Penthouse Suites to Vista Suites and the Owners Suites to Grand Suites but the deck plans have a message to chose if for travel before or after October 14th and, if choosing the latter, they aren't accessible right now and .

The new price for S9 suites is about $4000 per person.  We are paying less than $5000 for two with the Plus package in January. 

This is what surprises me at https://www.princess.com/en-us/ships-and-experience/ships/su-sun-princess and could account for some of the increase but not all.

Princess Premier Included

13 hours ago, SCX22 said:

You won't be missing anything.  Santorini is more of pain than a pleasure as a cruise ship passenger because you get dropped off at the bottom of a cliff and you're at the mercy of a cable car with not enough capacity, donkeys, or a path full of donkey dung to get to town--all of which are terrible options.

Santorini is beautiful but even on our first visit (vacation for 5 days in 1998) it was obvious to me that the port would reach its breaking point sooner or later.  Actually I'm amazed that it was 25 years later.

The city of Seattle offers a free transfer from the ship to the airport.  Check out https://www.portseattle.org/page/port-valet-enjoy-seattle-luggage-free

I'm sure there must be reviews on the West Coast Departures board:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/315-west-coast-departures/

8 minutes ago, MTNest93 said:

The Sanctuary is adult only on the Sun, same as all other Princess ships.

But Sun Princess suites have a designated section contiguous to and aft of the Sanctuary called the Signature Sun Deck.  I don't think I've read anything definitive about whether kid suite passengers can use it.  I do recall reading that adult suite passengers can use the Sanctuary. 

1 minute ago, msmoger said:

 

Thanks, that seems to answer my question.

Great.  We even added an extra day at the end instead of having to rush to the airport.  Everything worked out perfectly.  Sounds like you are planning a wonderful vacation.

35 minutes ago, skynight said:

When you are within the 330 day booking limit go into EZ Air. Find the flights and dates you want. Based on my experience you can book early like you wish.   

IIRC bookings for round trip flights open 330 days before the return flight. 

37 minutes ago, msmoger said:

We are booked on a Diamond Japan cruise which sails 4/5/2025.  We have also booked a non Princess escorted land tour in Japan which starts 3/22/2025.

 

When booking EZAir flights is there a limitation on how early the date can be for the US to Japan flight (e.g. 3/19/2025)?

 

Thanks,

Last year we booked EZ-Air tickets to Australia departing the US on 3/18 and embarking on our cruise on 4/2 without any problems.

In this recent review South Florida shuttles and Jiffy Jeff are recommended for car seats.

With the older child, you might invest in an inflatable booster seat that is meets federal safety standards and is easy to transport.  That's what we've used when our 4 years old and up granddaughters come to visit.

https://a.co/d/chYnMU6

3 hours ago, language said:

Thank you.  Will work on figuring this out.  

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic.  There is an abundance of information on this site but it can take a while to figure out how to access it all.  The secret is to start on the home page and then drill down by category into the various boards and sub-forums.

If you haven't figured out @njhorseman's advice yet here are the links:

• Africa (and Middle East) Ports of Call Board:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/19-africa-amp-middle-east/
• Regent Board:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/106-regent-seven-seas-cruises/

As other have recommended, compare Princess prices with booking yourself.  Two North American Homeports boards can help you:

West Coast Departures: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/315-west-coast-departures/

Florida Departures: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/533-florida-departures/

There is a much wider variety of hotels to chose from in Fort Lauderdale compared to San Pedro. Given that the Fort Lauderdale airport and Port Everglades are almost contiguous (only separated by a highway) hotels in the 17th Street area are within minutes of both the airport and port.  The Florida Departures board is full of questions, answers and recommendations on Fort Lauderdale hotels and transportation.

Google maps says .7 mile and 16 minutes.  While I think there are sidewalks, there is no shade and that is quite the walk in Florida heat and humidity with luggage.

Have you asked on your cruise line forum if anyone has been in a similar situation and did they provide a shuttle?

9 minutes ago, Potstech said:

Nothing wrong with the Caribbean Princess. Have sailed her several times with none of the Problems mentioned. None.  Last time was 2 years ago. The only real way to find out the truth is to bite the bullet and take your current cruise.  Enjoy.

I could have written the same thing.  We sailed on her in January 2022 and July 2023.

20 minutes ago, Mjkny said:

You could probably get them swapped

Assuming we keep the booking (I'm waiting to hear more positive information after the Sun has been sailing for a few months before I need to make final payment), that is at the top if my list when we meet our steward.

1 hour ago, akaCruiser said:

If your goal is to avoid crowds (kids), then the month of March is not the best month. Instead I would suggest to either sail the prior month or the following month.

 

Many public schools schedule spring vacation the week before or after Easter which is April 20th next year. Our daughter teaches in Fairfax County, Va and their 2025 spring break is the week of April 14. 

On 4/13/2024 at 12:50 PM, Wishing on a star said:

I remember that on one of the these threads about the Sun Princess, somebody had posted a picture, from inside the Atrium, where you could see the balcony of that first cabin on deck 9, right there, with little privacy.  So I thought I would forward this.

Here, somebody has posted a video of 9358, which on the starboard side is 9361.

This shows what it is like being on that balcony, right next to the Atrium.

I also notice that the door out to the balcony seems to be a single swing-out door, and not a slider.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksNsN2dOYWg

 

A plus that I noticed is that the balcony chairs have high backs and recline.  The pictures of the S9 Signature Suite (mini-suite layout) chairs we have reserved for next January have low backs (the top of the chair hits in the middle of your back) and don't recline!

5 minutes ago, EbayCruiser said:

Just hate it when people post such bad reviews.  

You need to remember that some people are more apt to take the effort to complain than praise.  Social media has given a much wider audience to the complainers.

Since all your fellow passengers who parked at pier 18 are in the same boat so to speak, possibly your cruise line will run a shuttle.  Princess has done that before.  Just ask at Guest Services a few days before disembarkation.

Luggage drop off is right outside Terminal 2 and the entrance to the terminal is right there with a few benches passengers can wait on for the driver to return. The Heron parking garage entrance is only a few yards away (follow the signs). Use the parking garage elevators back to ground level or, if parked on the higher decks, you can use the crossover to the terminal on deck 5 and then take the elevator down (opens to the outside of the building) and go around the corner to meet your party.  Once inside all the check-in processing is on the ground floor but ship embarkation requires taking an elevator or escalator up to the second floor.  From there to the ship (which would be on the far right side in the picture below) is the usual covered gangway.

The luggage drop off is on the left under the garage structure and the drive to the garage is through that area.  The area in the middle is where the entrance lines form and has some benches.  One of the elevators from/to the deck 5 is on the far right.  Hope this helps.

We are frequent Princess cruisers and our TA always gives a 7 to 12% fare reduction and if she has a block of cabins on the cruise she throws in a modest OBC (between $60 - $80).  On two other lines she didn't reduce the fare but did provide a healthy rebate following the cruise and some OBC.

If considering using a TA to book a Princess cruise, realize that they are not allowed to advertise their lower fares.  Instead you must inquire (phone, online, in person) for a rate quote. 

6 hours ago, sptrout said:

 Good for late arrivals and fast exits, but otherwise you are better off just getting to the theater a little early and get the seats you want. 

28 minutes ago, cynbar said:

Thank you all, as always you are a wealth of information. Wi-fi calling seems the way to go, especially since I'll already be paying for internet. My iPhone is enabled for Wi-fi calling and I have noted to make sure it is in airplane mode. Do I also need to turn off cellular or roaming or anything else?

Turn off cellular.

Here's AT&T's instructions in case you haven't found them yet.

https://www.att.com/support/article/wireless/KM1063258 (intro)

https://www.att.com/support/article/wireless/KM1359697/ (setup)

Try it from home before the cruise to make sure it works.