Wishing on a star

ERIC. Can you tell us more about how crowded it is with three ships in port? There will be two large ships when we will be there. NANA.... The chairs that were rented, I believe, are in that one area.. I wonder if it is a little less busy there. And, aren't they padded... And perhaps have increased level of service? I think we might rent an umbrella. I see a recent sign that said $22. And if we drive instead of fly, I can bring my nice thick exercise/yoga mat... it makes a perfect pool lounge topper! None of the beaches around this area appeal to me... When you have Grace Bay Beach, Grand Cayman, Destin FL, etc... the darker sand, less clear water in this area, and less upscale/professional vibe, just don't do it for me. We might head off the ship as early as possible, hope to find a spot in Amber Cove... And then plan to go back onboard and enjoy a quieter port-day onboard that afternoon.

Above..... you said...." I do have to agree about the buffet. I really did not like the lunch buffet most days. A couple of days I skipped lunch, a couple of days I went to the dining room, and a couple of days I ordered in a sandwich from room service. Pizza and tacos (Salty Dog grill had Street tacos) were good, and the rest of the time I picked through what I could find in the buffet. Last sea day was sushi, finally. Breakfast was almost worse, too - no real toast, no freshly fried eggs, and the supplies for the omelets kept getting lower and lower as the cruise went on. " All people do have different levels of expectations and tastes... But, what you just described, IMHO, is simply NOT acceptable to me. I do not know what the OP had for lunch and suppers onboard. But, I do believe their post. I have been on a couple of Princess Cruises with BAD food. Service is also 'one of those things' If you lucked out, then GREAT!!!! We have had excellent room stewards and waitstaff that we returned to... And we have also had 'bad'. Seriously, we should have gotten up on one occasion and spoken to the Maitre d' and changed to a different table and area all together. These things DO happen.... The OP here asked... "Does Princess even have a corporate culinary program that ensures consistence across their entire fleet? If they do, they are failing. One ship's mistakes affect how their entire brand is perceived." The answer is YES... But, to the OP... If there is one thing that Princess might be known for, it might be inconsistency. We have had poor food, and great food! And, will also say this... for those of us who are more familiar, we know what dishes that Princess does well... ( that PIZZA! ) And what to avoid. Choosing blind, could end up being poor choices. I will say this, about the staffing issue... There are a lot of new staff... many current staff are now boarding the new SUN Princess. If you saw issues with staff with less than adequate English and training... I wonder if that might be an issue, at this particular time?

There is only one thing about double booking... If there is a promo code offer that is unique, and once it is applied to a booking, it can't be applied again. In that one case, when we and our TA both put a booking (hold) on a cruise.. They then told us that the special OBC offer that we had, was now 'used' and couldn't be applied.

Ohhh my! I didn't know that 'Hold' was gone !

I do not think there should be any problem.... But, the way to know for sure is to either call Princess or your TA,.. You can go online and act like you are booking a different cabin... Easy to put it on hold... If that works you should be good to go. I believe I remember that we have had a cruise on hold, then our TA made a booking, and both were showing in our Princess account. But, things can change!

I see that the band X-cite will be onboard the SUN. But, we will not be able to sail until October... And it looks like they will either take some time off or change ships when she arrives at FLL.... Wish we had not decided to cancel Europe this Spring!

Thank you SO much!!!

We are looking to book one of these cabins for next year. It seems odd that they are priced differently (less) than other balcony cabins in this area. Do any of you here have any idea why this might be? I would think that these would actually be more desirable, due to the balcony. I know that THRAK might be in one of these this Spring.... But, maybe somebody here has seen these cabins?

GREAT! enjoy!

That is too bad!!! our last cruise, REGAL, last year.. I was so pleasantly surprised!!! In fact, we thought that Crown Grill was one of the least experiences. Bad steak, and too much of a heavy sauce on the Sea Bass. Plus, the whole venue was fully (over) booked so service and ambiance really suffered) Can anybody tell us who the Executive Chef and head of dining and beverage are onboard. That, I think, can make ALL the difference!!!

Cruising policy is, I think, very clear and strict about passengers and berths. I do not believe that one would, within policy, bring one onboard?

Look to book an Obstructed Balcony, on deck 8 ( Emerald Deck ) Look for the ones that are at the mid-ship center bump out area. The only 'obstruction' is just the public deck area below. Most of these have angled balconies that give you a little extra balcony space as well. Standard Balcony cabins E414-E436 on PORT side. E415-E437 STARBOARD. Assuming you are traveling as one or two guests... the system might not let you book the Deluxe Balcony cabins, slightly bigger with a little love-seat. These would be E404 - E412 PORT... E403 - E411 STARBOARD Notice that CROONERS is just below on the Port side. Might be able to hear that until they shut down for the night. We love the REGAL!!! Take advantage of the Adult Pool area... You might not be able to find availability in the Sanctuary, as those with early priority boarding will be able to reserve first... upon boarding. First come first served. Yes, there is a spa thermal area. I do not know the current cost. Casual Dining would be Alfredos. It used to be included no-charge... but that just changed. If you have a PLUS package, you get two visits included. There is also the Asian sushi venue. Ocean Terrace. Specialty dining would be Crown Grill Steakhouse and Sabatini's Italian. Princess has changed up and increased the costs for these extra dining venues... And I would be afraid that I would not be up to date and quote you the wrong rate!

Ohhh, that is too bad.... What matters is if this is past final payment date. That date is the magic date. You would have been in a much better situation if you could just cancel, and then rebook with the current promo!

Of course, I do understand how this works. (others who are newer to Princess might not) I don't think anybody is saying to try to 'book' beforehand. Of course, nobody can book before boarding... But those Onboard who will be on the second leg of a back-2-back CAN BOOK/RESERVE loungers through the 10 days that we will be onboard. If our sailing is the second half of a (popular) Back 2 Back itinerary, That is sold as one longer voyage, then, yes, those who have booked the entire 20 days, and who boarded 10 days before we do... they could very well have the entire Sanctuary booked before we board. I have never planned a voyage that is set up like this. So I was simply wondering if anyone here with experience thinks we might have any real chance at all to find any openings.

I believe it should be almost the same as A102 on Discovery.... Here is a video. (not liking the 'effects' that the woman uses in the beginning, but a good idea of how the inside of this suite is, with the slightly sloped forward facing window wall. Hope this helps!

Yes, this is a Royal Class Ship, with those who are booking these two as one voyage, or piecing them together as a B2B, being able to book all the loungers before we board. This might the one time we would have to cruise without any good chance of getting the Sanctuary. I have to admit... I would be disappointed!

We are looking ahead into Feb. 2025. And see a 10 day cruise with a unique itinerary that would take us some places we have not seen. The one thing is, this is also offered as a 20-day single long voyage, beginning 10 days before this one. Can anyone tell me, in the Caribbean.. do we have any chance, at all, of finding times in the Sanctuary? especially sea days. This will be a Caribbean Cruise in Feb. We would be boarding at the very first available time, as Platinum.

Not a great video, as it was filmed vertically instead of landscape... (and turn down the sound) This is on the Sky, so different linens, drapes, etc... But VERY similar cabin.

I found this here on CC..... The SECOND photo is a mini-suite, vs a deluxe balcony And, there are curtains on both the left and right, between the main bed and the extra beds. I don't know if they close all the way???

I would def. go for the mini-suite. The deluxe balcony would have the berths for the teens right there in the same cabin area as the beds. These are only a few extra feet more than the standard balcony cabins. In a mini-suite at least the areas are divided. The extra beds are where the sofa is. I believe, for four with separate beds, the pull-down will come down over the sofa. And there is the curtain there, that at least provides some kind of division space. To bad Princess doesn't have cabins with the split bath like Disney, and some cabins on Carnival. Of course, one bathroom for the four guests. It is a slightly larger bath with a small tub, instead of just the small corner shower. I am assuming that you are not considering two cabins... Especially with the third and fourth guests Promo. If you can't spring for two cabins, go for at least a min-suite.

Okay, I looked again at that photo - which is not a good one! I see that the umbrella post are already set up for each of those pairs of chairs. Just no umbrella yet. Perhaps they set these up in sections... and then you pick one that is there, first come first served. We have a similar umbrella.. almost as big, but thicker nicer fabric. It is not that heavy. These look like thin fabric that does not fully block UV????? More like a big umbrella? And why did they not buy nicer ones that are the Royal Blue color!!!!

Is the language on the Princess web-site the same as on Carnival? It says these items are 'included'... like you would receive them... but no mention of setup. I would not want to think that Princess would have a 'you carry it... you set it up.. and what about 'bring it back? On our last visit to PC, We booked a cabana... our favorite location that we had already seen and picked out. We loved that! And, it was especially nice since rain came thru that morning.

Princess must be strictly prohibiting these cruise staff blogs... I know they are a big thing on a couple of then other lines. We will have to be PATIENT !!!!!!

I am not understanding this 'congestion' reason or excuse. These port, their port authorities, know how many berths they have... They know how many ships the island/country will allow. And the schedule can be set up months and even a year in advance? It would be interesting to know what is going on. The inaugural cruise, the SUN Princess next month, will have to skip Santorini, and call on Crete. I am not sure why they are announcing this weeks instead of months in advance? Did Santorini not contact any affected cruise companies before now, that they would be closing the cable-car lift? Perhaps inspection made them see the need to do maintenance and repair sooner than later... (Glad I didn't book that, because of the possibility of cold or unsettled weather. Santorini was one of a couple of stops that were truly on my bucket list!!!! To find this out well after final payment... I would not be happy!)

The value of any upgrades offered will probably depend on how many cabins Princess has available to upgrade, and unsold. If you are eligible to bid... decide on what amount of money you think would be a good deal, and make it worth the extra cost. Bid, and cross your fingers. Once you bid, and if your bid is accepted, you are pretty much locked in. Your cabin can be any available cabin in any location in that Category. The only possibility is, if you do not like the new cabin location, you can do an even switch to any other cabin that might show up as available.