Wishing on a star

3 hours ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

inasmuch as my kid loves chicken fingers, he doesn't want to eat them on a cruise. He tried a couple of times on different lines, but every time they just weren't to his liking. Oh, and the lack of honey mustard...

I just posted a similar comment on another current thread...  If there is something like that you really want... ( a particular sweetener in that case ) bring it!!!!  

Honey mustard, Your favorite soft drink, sweetener,  hot sauce....  Hey....  cruise happy!!!!

But it doesn't sound like honey mustard would help these 'chicken' fingers.

I do not know from experience,  but have seen comments that the quality of beef on the SUN has been better.  I am hoping so!!!   Even thought The Catch does not have it's own venue,  I have not tried it, and we are considering going Premier instead of Plus so that we have these included.

I wonder if dining at a less busy time would help with the ambiance at The Catch?

That can be true on the Royal and Regal,  but the newer Royal Class ships have a number of Premium Balcony or Premium Deluxe Balcony cabins, on Deck 9.  So at least there are those!  

But same small bathroom and shower.  At least the showers are a tiny bit bigger than older ships.

Yes,  we have noticed that.  The entry level 'teaser' beginning-at rates are only for a collection of entry level cabins in the basic categories.   And, may have to be GTY as well.   

Cheaper way to get on a ship.  But we are more picky about our cabin!

Thanks again MS411 !!!

I see that that link is for Paradise Taxi and Tours.

They will take one small party.. with minimum pricing, like for up to 5 people.

It seems that a 3 hour tour/driver is $350.00.

They have different options, including the tour ends at Magen's Bay, and then you taxi back to the  Port when you are ready.

Thank you so much MS411 !!!

Can you tell me if it is more of a walk, or any hassle to meet with a pre-arranged private driver/tour.  Assuming that this is not at the usual taxi rank at the Havensight Cruise Port.

Private tours/drivers can be pricey.  I see Paradise Taxi and Tours does three hours for $350.

We do not travel with a third passenger...  Last time we traveled with our now adult son, we had an interior across the hall for him...

But, for those that do, these promos are really great!!!

Princess really wants to market to families now.

Not sure if you will be able to get a specific answer.

As far as 'high traffic'...  on Deck 6 itself, the only reason for anybody to be going by would be to get to, and from, those neighboring staterooms.

The gamble is the gray-areas.  You are directly across from one, and there is the one mentioned directly above.  (the one above might be the one to be more concerned about.)

Could be just fine!!!  But, unless you get lucky and somebody who has been in these cabins can comment, you just don't know for sure.

Are there any other cabins available to consider in other areas???

I think I have seen video of the 'chicken strips'...  UGGHHHH.

I would hate to have my kid wanting to eat those for the duration of a cruise!

I don't know????   Could be???   We would be okay with that.   As the reality of this ship seems to have changed and is very different than our high expectation.   We have another deposit on a cruise that a move-over could become very enticing.

I am also thinking about gratuitous upgrades???  As maybe higher categories might have some availability???

We are not even coming up on final payment, and while the cruise is not showing anything 'sold out',  balconies and mini-suites seem to be GTY, if available at all.  Same with Ocean View.  A lot of Interior rooms available thouogh.

Yes, SUN Princess has a sofa and a better bathroom with the glass door shower.

No, the SUN does not have many cabins. ( like Caribe deck on other ships ) with larger balconies.   You would have to book a Premier Balcony to get a larger balcony.

The balconies on the in-set sections are larger than the balconies on the bump-out sections.  But the in-set sections are really set far back from the sea, with the much wider open decks below.

On the newer Royal Class Ships, there are balconycabins, and premium balcony cabins, with larger balconies, on Dolphin Deck, but they will not have a better bathroom or larger shower.

TIP:  to address the 'friendly' shower curtain....  Yes, it will move and blow around and cling to you!!!   To helps solve that issue. WET THE SHOWER CURTAIN DOWN before you step into the shower...  When it is heavy and wet, it won't really cling to you when you are getting wet!

If the bathroom is not the biggest issue, there are wake-view cabins with larger/deeper balconies, on many of the decks.  

It can pay to really go over the deck plans!

Wow...   we must have chosen some popular cruises....  Ours have gone UP by hundreds of dollars pp since we booked!

It sounds like this cruise was booked with a non-refundable deposit???  

it only pays to re-book / re-fare if the savings are considerably more than the fees or loss of perks.

I have seen that on the Sun Princess, there are two,  yes just TWO, breakfast plate options.

Some have had success with requests.  But this is the lame and insane way Princess thinks it is going to go with breakfast.    

Princess is really going the wrong direction here.   Breakfast on a cruise or an inclusive vacation is a BIG thing.    Just like adult only areas that might possibly disappear.    

I can not have the sugar, and am picky about which sweetener I use...   I  ALWAYS  carry my pink packets with me.   I found out the hard way that one never knows what are actually in some of those packets...  and they will give me a migraine...  They are known for this...they are just toxic to many of us.

Once, on a Princess cruise, I was two days in before I realized why I was feeling ill....   And, on that one, for some reason, it was natural sugar that was hard to find!!!! 

We don't book Suites...  any Suite....

So, all of this 'conversation' is meaningless to me.

I don't need anyone to tell me that the Sanctuary is not 'worth it' when it is a tiny fraction of the cost of a Suite.  And, in fact, the topic of this thread was directed at those who are not in the new Sanctuary Class on Sun Princess, or Suite category.

Thanks!  Perhaps this is something that has been done regularly...  so not a big indication of changes to come.

But, again, anyone from Princess reading this, along with other threads about the SUN Princess,  a ship with no adult area will be a deal-breaker, and would mean no further bookings....

We just returned from a trip to a nice resort.  We had a walk-out room (because this resort has a design flaw, where all floors above walk-out exit with the elevators going out the back, and have to walk around the building every time to get to the pool/beach/venues). The walkout was great!!!!  But, especially during the first two days over the weekend, plenty of shrieking kids right outside our unit, which was right there front and center.

An adult only area on a cruise ship is a MUST.

Maybe using the APP will go better after the chaos of boarding day???  Too bad.  I hate to hear that!

Glad to see the photo of that ravioli dish at Alfredo's!  Looks a bit different than what we had last, on Regal.  It was the mini-raviolis.   It sounds like yours had too much sage!!!!   Some people rave about it, and I understand that they don't have it any more on some ships.  Either way, I agree that it didn't seem to be what many might consider 'Italian', and I would stick to the other choices!

That discoloration/stain might be one reason that Princess seems to be moving towards banning door decorations?

Hope you have a wonderful/better day today on your cruise!

I went back and looked at that trip report...

And, sorry!!!  I was thinking loungers but it was a cabana at the Sanctuary that they wanted to book.  

Maybe that is a good thing???  Maybe a mistake that somebody thought all cabanas were booked?  Or maybe the person thought that they were wanting loungers, and loungers were all booked.

I will be one of those who will be following how things go with the Sanctuary.

They mentioned not being able to get availability on a lounger in the Sanctuary, as per the usual First Come First Served...   But that, the Concierge was able to get them what they wanted.  Did not seem to be a problem at all.

If this is true,  and I don't know why there would be confusion or anything not true,  then this would indicate that there are SOME loungers in the Sanctuary being held back for Suite guests.  (Similar to what was originally expected on the SUN,  but then became an exclusive, class, ship-within-a-ship setup.)

If this is true, then this would seem to be the beginning of some kind of move towards a Suite or SANCTUARY class on these ships.

The minute that the announcement was made about this the Sun Princess, some were quick to see this and comment on how easily this could be done on the Royal Class ships.

I am already thinking that I need to adjust my one future booking.

Couldn't hurt, up until Final Payment.

On 4/30/2024 at 4:21 PM, JillK said:

The reserve collection seem really special but I couldn't justify the cost to upgrade when booking for next March - even though with hubby, myself and our two teenaged sons, we certainly could use that additional space! 

 

We are fortunate though to have been able to secure a cove balcony cabin and I have been searching since the Sun's launch for any photos or videos of what one actually looks like. If anyone can point me to or share some real images (not just Princess renderings) that would be appreciated!

First,  with the announcement of the new SANCTUARY CLASS collection of cabins on the Sun Princess, not sure if the Reserve is much, if anything at all.  Basically, it was access to, supposedly, reservation free, and more exclusive dining.  If you need more space, then you would have to book a Mini-Suite.  Some are regular Mini-Suites, some are Cabana Mini-Suites which are a deluxe balcony with the 'cabana' added on...  Some are Cabana Deck Mini-Suites which have the cabana added on, as well as access to the exclusive Cabana Deck on both Port and Starboard...  And some are SANCTUARY CLASS Mini-Suites, which have Sanctuary Perks.  These will include the Premium Package, so you do not have to buy a 'Package',

There I a video I posted, that is being posted here, about the cabin categories...  This shows a good basic overview of a Cove Balcony..  I think the Cove Balcony is shown at about 4:10 minutes in.

I am seeing comments where a Suite guest had not been able to get loungers in the Sanctuary, but the the Concierge made the reservations for them.  They were able to get loungers as they wanted.

Has this been something usual in the past???  Is this new?

Of course Princess is not known for being consistent!!!  I know that access to the Sanctuary has not been a Suite perk.

If this is something new, then I am seeing the signs already posted that Princess will move towards taking the Retreat area and the Sanctuary,  and restricting therm to a new  SANCTUARY CLASS SYSTEM, like they now have on the Sun Princess. I would almost bet on it.  

I will say that if these Royal Class ships end up without an adult only area,  I will not be sailing with Princess.

We have one cruise booked on the Sun, that we are now questioning....

We have another cruise booked on a Royal Class ship, that would also be cancelled if Princess makes these changes.

The ones one Deck 9, with access to the exclusive Cabana Deck should cost a bit more.

To complicate things even more, Princess used to have RESERVE mini suites.. with access to a reserve dining room...  but seem to be ending that.

And now they have Sanctuary Mini Suites that have access to the exclusive SANCTUARY wake view with the pool and bar etc.

Okay,  this is very confusing,  and Princess has changed around some of these categories in a major way.

The Cabana Deck Mini Suites on Deck 9 has access to that special exclusive Cabana Deck.  Notice the word DECK in the name of the category.

This is great.  But, know that if it actually is ON that cabana deck, the privacy on your balcony will be compromised, as others with access to this deck can be right outside your balcony.

Know that instead of normal railing, you would be looking over your balcony divider and out thru double-high blue tinted glass (wind breaking???)

The Cabana Deck Mini Suites on Deck 9 that are forward or aft of the actual Cabana Deck, (bright pink on the deck plans) of course, have access to the Cabana Deck, but the privacy is not compromised, as they are not ON / overlooking the Cabana Deck.  They still have the double-high blue tinted glass.

The Cabana Mini Suite on Deck 12 does not have access to that exclusive Cabana Deck.

This might be offset by the fact that the ones on Deck 12, which are on the 'Sphere' would have large balconies.  A big plus...  They have the cabana and the balcony that is larger than the standard balconies on the ship. (which, some can be fairly shallow)

Also a plus to these is NO double high blue glass.

All of these Cabana Mini Suites have an interior that is smaller than a non-cabana mini-suite.

You are either getting the space in the mini-suite, or in the combination of a deluxe balcony interior and the cabana area.  So, be aware of this when comparing a Cabana, or Cabana Deck, mini suite with a regular non-cabana mini-suite.  These have the larger, full mini-suite interior.

There are some photos out there...  but I do not have time at the moment to post links for you.

Perhaps later.   We are actually packing to leave out on a trip soon!

Hope this helps!

If you have not received any notice of a room assignment,  have you double checked your booking?  I have heard that the room number can show up there well before any notice is received.

Yes,  we do understand!   As bits of info have been offered.

I just edited this post, because I looked, just out of curiosity, and it seems that this cruise is now showing Sold Out.

You might have had more opportunities to get another cabin if you had known this earlier, before Final Payment.

I do not know if you will have any luck with your bidding?  As nobody knows.

Your chances are probably slim if the system is set to only upgrade to another accessible cabin.   (It is awful that any accessible cabin would have metal railing, as somebody probably couldn't see over when seated.

I think you still have a 50/50 chance of getting one of those cabins, on the higher deck, that does have glass.   And, you can always go to Customer Service upon boarding, and see if there is any chance that they can help you.