kathy49

These are very very old ships and looks like it is a party ship. I don't think this concept will attract many from US that travel so far to Greece. Prices are high but probably have lots of sales. Will get mostly party crowd from Europe.

1 hour ago, STLCARDS82 said:

I've noticed with social media that if people have a trick or a tip that works on a cruise ship, they want to share it with everybody ....that's ruining the trick or the tip.... you've got a good thing going. Keep your mouth shut.😁

So true...if this had been just a small number of bookings Princess may well have honored them but when the word was spread thru social media and some reported 800 booked on this I guess they had no choice. Good advice above. 

3 hours ago, gah_cruise said:

Does anyone know of any vlogs and reviews that are posted of the inaugural cruise of the Sun Princess?
I can only find short snippets so far.

I think you will see more of the YT type of tours starting March 9 and March 14..they have invited some YT influencers to sail for 5 nights on each of those departures.

State of Emergency declared today. Not sure cruise ships will continue to go in there. I think this is a major escalation and some desperate people on the loose.

28 minutes ago, cruisedoctor said:

Park 19 is NOT open, and no word as to when it will go into operation.  Based on the original renderings, the forward portion doesn’t look complete yet.  It seems that while all these venues that aren’t operational seem to look completed, it is the unseen technical aspects that are the holdup.

Rex confirmed in latest NOT ADULT ONLY

4 minutes ago, chamima said:

 

But there was a video on this thread of the musicians in the Irish Pub.

Unless Princess has some amazing Disney animatronics they were definitely human and playing/singing.

they have the usual live music but at this point no production type shows as venues are not ready including Spellbound.

22 minutes ago, MTNest93 said:

Seems like it.  I've watched all the videos showing pools and other than some having steps onto the wading area, all the pools have ladders from what I've seen 😞

WEll I love swimming but one of my criteria is steps to comfortably enter a pool. Given the number of older cruisers this surprises me.

1 hour ago, Wishing on a star said:

Yes..  Rex has uploaded a video of the DOME.  and mentions ADULT ONLY more than once....   MANY THANKS TO HIM, AND OTHERS ONBOARD, for all they are doing for us!

I wonder if Princess is committed to this as an adult only area????

This would be the new open Adult Only area.

And, while not exclusive,  much nicer than the Sanctuary, as it currently is...  with some padded seating.

NO STAIRS INTO THE POOL!

 

Are we still awaiting video of the AFT wake view area???

 

 

Is that for real..no steps into pool?

1 hour ago, vjmatty said:

Room 2017 or the year 2017? lol 

There is so much contrary info not sure what really is going on. Some sayit is an old photo from 2017 old sun princess but who knows.

2 hours ago, Cdude said:

I’m interested to find out too. Anybody on board that can help straighten this out?

 

TIA!

there was no flooding it was in 2017

10 minutes ago, cheersforbeers said:

What about those who may have elevated temps not from a virus? Denied? 

yes I can see all the complications. 

19 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

I actually wouldn't have an issue if NCL insisted on taking passenger temps before boarding, like they did after the restart.  Any elevated temps, and you're denied boarding.....PERIOD!

agree so much now is reactive and only when there is so much illness does  it get to media or   prevents countries from letting them dock.

50 minutes ago, Vinnyv20032003 said:

Maybe they changed the title from ‘10 Day Grand Mediterranean’ to ‘EUROPE -SOUTHERN’ because they’re just going to allow us to enjoy the ship while it’s being worked on in Monfalcone. 

Seriously why would they change the name of the cruise at this time??? Has to be a reason. If I were on this voyage I would keep a close eye on the itinerary as something will be changed or no need to change the name.

41 minutes ago, CruiseCrabs said:

With a completely new fuel system, larger capacity, complex entertainment venues, etc. that have not been seen on Princess before, we passed on the 1.0 version, the Sun, and booked fall on the Star so all glitches could (hopefully) be dealt with on the new LNG ships could be worked out and Princess corporate’s odd, seemingly protracted and delayed partner negotiations (Love by Britto, Spellbound) should not be an challenge like I think those also were. I also think the Sun was conceived under one leadership team and revised under Padgett’s “carnivalization” of the brand, which would certainly result in delays. 
 

By now, I would expect more ship tour videos from Princess of this is a truly revolutionary experience that was ready to sail, even if that may create confusion as it is so different from the other ships in the fleet. Let’s hope we have seen the last of the cancellations for the passengers’ sake and that Princess can share some good news soon.

Princess was fully aware of the increased risk due to all aspects of construction as outlined above. That is no excuse.

1 hour ago, eroller said:

 

It’s a good point.  February in Europe is a horrible time to bring out a new ship.  Not many want to sail the Med in the dead of winter.  In fact I saw airline interline rates being offered on several of the first SUN sailings at heavily discounted pricing.  Kind of crazy to see that for a brand new ship.  
 

It would have been the perfect opportunity for Princess to take delivery of the ship and test it out with shake down cruises for a few weeks. Make sure everything is up to speed before the first paying guests embark.  

Agreed...it is simply not a good time for many of the ports...but they got top $$ from passengers to basically "shake down cruises".

28 minutes ago, bubbaed said:

It's possible that Princess is/was under a legal contract with Fincantieri that prohibits them from sharing details of the delay, lest they find themselves in legal jeopardy. Until Princess takes 100% responsibility for the ship, they are likely not in control of what information they can and can't share with the public.

 

This could also explain the lack of media coverage, social media coverage, etc.

 

Until the other day, the ship, technically, did not belong to Princess - it belonged to the shipyard. Now that Princess has ownership, it is still parked at the dock getting work done so it makes sense that Princess would not want to throw their contractor under the bus, so to speak. Not to mention the Star, currently under construction, could be impacted by any negative press.

 

In the case of RC and the Icon rollout contrast with Sun's rollout, it's possible that RCI has a different legal arrangement with their shipyards than Princess does - one which allows them more freedom of sharing information.

 

Not en expert in such things, just guessing.

I think the explanation makes sense. However RCL really did not have to share much other than the usual lead up to the rollout which happened as planned.

8 minutes ago, Cdude said:

Interesting how the PR effort from Royal on their new ship was so positive and with Princess it’s damage control🥹

RCL did not need any damage control...it was for the most part a text book roll out of a ship with social media commentators giving great reviews as well as happy cruisers. When I hear friends that are travel agents say they are sometimes on hold for hours with Princess despite being a top producer for them I wonder what is going on with this company. Cost containment measures are now resulting in increased reports of staffing shortage and long waits on ships. Right now if I were looking to experience a very large new ship I would book the Icon.

7 minutes ago, Nofx242 said:

We are now all Beta testers for everything.  Sadly this is happening with any new product, you see this with all new software or games as well.  Now things are rushed and the paying public will just work with any bugs or issues and just deal with it.

 

I know this is different than a video game, but almost every game release for the past 2 years has been this way.  Even with lots of negative feedback or even a company's stock crashing things have not changed and you just see an apology.  

the release of the new "app" is another case where it is in the testing phase with many issues. I just don't hear this many problems with other comparable cruise lines.

18 minutes ago, rexdillinger said:

 

Wednesday morning, I received a call from a very nice lady at Princess (I won’t divulge her name) but she is part of the customer service Senior Management Team. She said the information I had receive that “all cruises of the Sun up until September would be cancelled” was incorrect and she was going to review the recording of my conversation to make sure this mistake didn’t happen to anyone else. 

 

After much discussion, I believe the original information I was given was incorrect. The Sun might not sail on the 28^th, but I don’t believe they will cancel all the cruises through August.

 

She did asked me if I would take down my posts, but I told her I wouldn’t take them unless she could say with certainty, that the February 28^th cruise would be sailing.

 

 “The cruise is scheduled to sail as planned,” was her response. 

 

When I pressed her, she said she could not guarantee that it would sail, which put me right back into the situation I had been in with the February 18^th cruise: a hope and a prayer that the Sun would sail. 

 

This lady was wonderful, and she even personally helped me rebook my outbound flight at our original fare. I have no complaints with her and appreciate all she did, however there are problems at Princess and those responsible hold a much higher job title than this lady.

 

I understand that things happen, schedules get blown up, problems are discovered at the last minute, and these things can lead to a last-minute cancellation of a cruise.  However, there is no excuse for Princess’ lack of timely communication or even no communication at all.

 

Over the past 3 weeks, I sent 4 emails begging Princess to confirm the 2/18 cruise. No response. I went to their online chat; nothing.

 

You cannot convince me that Princess didn’t know that the Sun wouldn’t be ready to sail this Sunday before 8:30pm Tuesday night. 

 

I have been involved with many muti-million-dollar projects during my career and anytime we were not able to meet out projected completion date, we knew well in advance. If Princess didn’t know the likelihood of the ship not sailing, then their project managers should be fired. 

 

In my opinion, they did know, and they knew well in advance of the original inaugural cruise, the 2^nd inaugural cruise, and for that matter, however many more cruises they might end up cancelling. In my opinion, they have a very good idea of what it will take to fix any of the “technical” issues they are having, but for some reason they believe silence is better than communication.  

 

Princess has failed their customers when it comes to transparent communication and upper management is to blame. Even though the Sun is technically scheduled to sail on the 28^th, I’m not convinced it will. How could I be after everything that has happened.

 

That’s my rant for today.

 

 

a very fair rant. The fact that they asked you to take down the posts I find troubling. This is a public forum and for all this agent knows is someone should have not given that info out. Their agents don't know about Feb. 28 let alone further out.

3 minutes ago, cruising.mark.uk said:

I'm confused.  Are you suggesting that people should just 'roll with the punches' when flights are cancelled at short notice, but not when an inaugural cruise suffers the same fate?  Flights are cancelled at short or no notice every day and some passengers would have been booked on those flights for reasons that had significant meaning to them (what if the flight was taking them on a once-in-a-lifetime holiday or to a wedding / funeral / birth?).  I don't think it's right to differentiate - it is always unfortunate when travel arrangements are cancelled very near to the date / time of departure.  Whether individual passengers are able to roll with the punches or not will depend entirely on their individual circumstances and the purpose of the journey, irrespective of the mode of travel.

You are comparing apples and oranges here. When a flight is cancelled per the contract they have to reschedule you on different day or maybe same day different routing etc. They get you to your destination. The important thing is they are regulated and get you to your destination. Often within hours. I see no comparison to this situation.

4 minutes ago, sfoh said:

One of the stories in Italian media yesterday stated crew were being disembarked. That conflicts with reports from folks with friends (presumably crew) on board, so who knows the real situation. 🤷🏻‍♂️

JP and top leaders of PCL...apart from them no one.  And given the actions sometimes I wonder how much they really know?

2 minutes ago, Vinnyv20032003 said:

 

I agree vacation should bring stress relief. I work in the airline industry, changes have rarely brought me undue stress. I have always had the mentality of just rolling with the punches, as many of us have with the lives we live. This time around is a bit different, mostly because this particular cruise vacation has so much meaning to all of us.

 

It would be bad enough if we were talking about an inaugural season of short Bahamas cruises (3-4 nights). Those LAST-MINUTE cancellations may still afford those inconvenienced with the opportunity to find another viable option. That example brings with it many other cruise departures of varying lengths from the same region to the same region, around the same dates. Or may be those inconvenienced decide on a hotel beach vacation, or an amusement park vacation instead. The fact is there are option people would be OK with!

 

The Sun Princess inaugural season of Mediterranean itineraries is a far different situation from the aforementioned. For many, this is a trip of a lifetime. Deciding to travel from the USA to Europe may be a once in a lifetime thing, and it is a big decision for many to make. The amount of planning, coordination is tremendous. It's not a matter of do you want to do the waverunners or the beach cabana at Princess Cay.

 

Don't get me wrong it's beyond exciting planning all of it. But you plan and coordinate all of it, with the expectation of doing it. Not having control over the situation AND not receiving good information from the corporation is disheartening. 

above points are all good. Most going on a cruise starting in Europe will be extending that trip either on the front end (probably most) or an extension after the cruise. It is a long expensive flight from US to just stay for a week or 10 days  taking into account some jet lag for most. This is a major investment for most.  Considering the distance most travel to the cruise at a minimum management of PCL should have made a decision one week out. There seems to be no consideration here  for passengers.

8 hours ago, eroller said:

Taking delivery of SUN PRINCESS.  
 

 

at this point passengers need more than photo ops.

40 minutes ago, insidecabin said:

UK the law is to process the refund within 14 days not 3 weeks

And also allows for all losses not limits like $200 air allowance.

I thought the 3 weeks was pretty long...I do think most on the first cancellation got it much faster.

Just now, Cruising Forever! said:

"Don't mind the diesel coming out of your bathroom faucets!  Just order several gallons of bottled water for daily drinking, brushing your teeth... bathing in, etc.  Please do not smoke anywhere aboard.  That funny truck exhaust smell near the pools should be ignored.  Trust us, this ship is LNG all the way, baby!!!  You don't smell diesel!"  - Thank you, Princess Cruises

 

(Seriously, if the reporting is true on diesel in the water pipes is true, I'd be canceling my Feb 28th cruise today- but we aren't booked on that one!  I'm sitting here wondering if I want to keep my Fall 2024 booking or cancel it... I think my downpayment was refundable.  Diesel in the water is unsafe, period.  If true, this ship builder has some MAJOR issues.)

 

They have too many ships on the books and can't meet deadlines, shortcuts being taken and probably not experienced workers for all jobs.  These mega ships are taking much longer and new territory.