What is the Sanctuary?

[barberesr]

Been a few years since I was on Princess, what is the sanctuary?

[billco]

Been a few years since I was on Princess, what is the sanctuary?

I went to the Princess website at

http://www.princess.com

and typed in the word "sanctuary" where it says "search." This is what came up under "Onboard Experience."

 

"The Sanctuary offers a relaxing alternative to the myriad outdoor activities and entertainment available elsewhere throughout the ship. Solitude seekers will be able to escape completely to this plush, outdoor spa-inspired setting with signature beverages, light meals, massages, attentive service and relaxing personal entertainment."

 

The full text is at

http://www.princess.com/learn/onboard/activities/daytime_activities/day_sanctuary/index.html

 

Hope this helps.

[ToxicMussels]

IIRC it is an 'adults only' section, no children running around.

Also, you should have pasted this crucial snippit: Note: There is a flat fee charge of $10 per person for each period.

A period is defined as AM (from 8am to 12:30pm) and PM (from 1pm to 5pm or later).

 

I may give it a go myself.

[Pirateskigirl]

IIRC it is an 'adults only' section, no children running around.

Also, you should have pasted this crucial snippit: Note: There is a flat fee charge of $10 per person for each period.

A period is defined as AM (from 8am to 12:30pm) and PM (from 1pm to 5pm or later).

 

I may give it a go myself.

 

It's $20 for a full day, $10 for half day. You can book it for the whole cruise too. Thicker cushions on the chairs. It's very nice.

[AFT_LOVER]

$20 a day PP and you pay for drinks???? Or a massage?

 

 

It's $20 for a full day, $10 for half day. You can book it for the whole cruise too. Thicker cushions on the chairs. It's very nice.

[J.E.C]

Is there access to Steam/Sauna/Hot Tubs etc, as part of the daily rate does nay one know, and how much do you think it would cost for a 10 night cruise to have a pair of passes to this area?

 

Many thanks

 

J

[geoherb]

There are free steam rooms and saunas in the changing rooms of the spa. The pool near the spa is also an adults only area. There are two hot tubs there.

 

Another area is the thermal suite of the spa. That is extra. It is co-ed and has the heated ceramic loungers, aromatherapy steam rooms, and special showers. I enjoyed this type of area on a Holland America ship, but that ship also had a thalassotherapy pool--something that the Princess ships I've been on don't have.

[LisaroseNY]

My husband and I just got off the Island Princess and used the Sanctuary 3 times on sea days. It was FANTASTIC! the chairs were so comfortable, the servers very attentive and there was a small pool in the area to use. If we wanted to go into the hot tub, the Lotus pool area (covered pool) wasn't far away. The only "complaint" that we had was that you had to get up each morning to sign up for chairs that day. I would have preferred to be able to sign up the day before and not have to get up and sign up by 8am.

 

For my husband and I, having a lounge chair without having to "fight" for one was so worth the extra money.

 

If you decide to use it, Enjoy!:D

[Pirateskigirl]

$20 a day PP and you pay for drinks???? Or a massage?

Drinks and massages are extra. You have your own servers and they will get you anything you want. They have a santuary lunch menu you just have to pay a service fee($3.50) but you can order things that are not one the menu. just ask.

if you book the Santuary for the whole cruise they assign you a lounge. Daily is first come first serve and you get whatever lougers are available.

[sandyoftheseas]

My husband and I just got off the Island Princess and used the Sanctuary 3 times on sea days. It was FANTASTIC! the chairs were so comfortable, the servers very attentive and there was a small pool in the area to use. If we wanted to go into the hot tub, the Lotus pool area (covered pool) wasn't far away. The only "complaint" that we had was that you had to get up each morning to sign up for chairs that day. I would have preferred to be able to sign up the day before and not have to get up and sign up by 8am.

 

For my husband and I, having a lounge chair without having to "fight" for one was so worth the extra money.

 

If you decide to use it, Enjoy!:D

 

Drinks and massages are extra. You have your own servers and they will get you anything you want. They have a santuary lunch menu you just have to pay a service fee($3.50) but you can order things that are not one the menu. just ask.

if you book the Santuary for the whole cruise they assign you a lounge. Daily is first come first serve and you get whatever lougers are available.

 

LisaroseNY, Pirateskigirl, or anyone else who has been on Island recently for Panama Canal,

I have read varying reports about the Island's sanctuary for PC cruises. Some say you can't reserve for the week, some say you can. Some say they don't assign a lounger for the week (if you can even book for the whole week), others say they do. Some say they are charging $20 a day and others say it's $15. Some also say that the actual canal day is like $70 or $80 by itself (whether you book for the week or just for the day). DW and I will be on her in just over a week - Acapulco to Ft. Lauderdale 10-day full transit. Just trying to get the real scoop from someone who has "been there / done that" recently. Heck, if you're on her now doing the reverse itinerary, that's even better! Hoping to get some solid intel before we leave. Any help is appreciated.

 

Rob (Sandy's DH)

[mk0520]

My DH & I have just gotten off the Island Princess 3-10-10. We were able to book the Sanctuary for the entire cruise. The rate is $15.00 per day per person if you book for the entire cruise in advance. The day that you go through the Panama Canal the rate is $70.00 per person. That is the good news-the bad news is that you cannot reserve your lounge chair in advance. That means that each & every morning you must go to the Santuary before it opens to reserve the chair you want. It opens at 8:30 each day. On the Panama Canal it opens at 5:00. It was full on Sea Days & the Panama Canal. People get their around 8:00 except for the Panama Canal when they were their at 4:00.

It was annoying to have to get their every day to reserve the lounge chair. If you don't mind being in the sun then you won't have a problem but we can't be in the sun. Having said that, we really did enjoy the Sanctuary. The staff are friendly and try so hard to make you happy. I hope this answere your questions. Have a wonderful cruise and tell everyone in the Sanctuary that Ed & Mary Kay said hello.

[chamima]

My DH & I have just gotten off the Island Princess 3-10-10. We were able to book the Sanctuary for the entire cruise. The rate is $15.00 per day per person if you book for the entire cruise in advance. The day that you go through the Panama Canal the rate is $70.00 per person. That is the good news-the bad news is that you cannot reserve your lounge chair in advance. That means that each & every morning you must go to the Santuary before it opens to reserve the chair you want. It opens at 8:30 each day. On the Panama Canal it opens at 5:00. It was full on Sea Days & the Panama Canal. People get their around 8:00 except for the Panama Canal when they were their at 4:00.

It was annoying to have to get their every day to reserve the lounge chair. If you don't mind being in the sun then you won't have a problem but we can't be in the sun. Having said that, we really did enjoy the Sanctuary. The staff are friendly and try so hard to make you happy. I hope this answere your questions. Have a wonderful cruise and tell everyone in the Sanctuary that Ed & Mary Kay said hello.

 

Once again there is no "fleet wide policy" for something. On every other ship that has the Sanctuary, if you book for the cruise you choose your lounger the first day and it is yours for the entire cruise. One of the things we liked about the Sanctuary was NOT having to get up and run to get a chair. I find this lack of corporate communication really annoying! :mad:

Luckily for us we are not planning to sail on the Island. (We are actually just back from the Coral and loved it but I would have to say that on this size ship there seemed to be empty loungers everywhere on the ship when I walked around so if I couldn't book a specific lounger for the whole cruise I think I would just skip the Sanctuary - and this is coming from someone that LOVES that area!)

[sandyoftheseas]

My DH & I have just gotten off the Island Princess 3-10-10. We were able to book the Sanctuary for the entire cruise. The rate is $15.00 per day per person if you book for the entire cruise in advance. The day that you go through the Panama Canal the rate is $70.00 per person. That is the good news-the bad news is that you cannot reserve your lounge chair in advance. That means that each & every morning you must go to the Santuary before it opens to reserve the chair you want. It opens at 8:30 each day. On the Panama Canal it opens at 5:00. It was full on Sea Days & the Panama Canal. People get their around 8:00 except for the Panama Canal when they were their at 4:00.

It was annoying to have to get their every day to reserve the lounge chair. If you don't mind being in the sun then you won't have a problem but we can't be in the sun. Having said that, we really did enjoy the Sanctuary. The staff are friendly and try so hard to make you happy. I hope this answere your questions. Have a wonderful cruise and tell everyone in the Sanctuary that Ed & Mary Kay said hello.

 

Mary Kay,

Thanks so much. This is exactly the kind of information I was looking for from someone who has lived it recently. I'm glad to hear that we will be able to book for the whole cruise (assuming we are onboard in time). Was the $70 Panama Canal day cost in addition to the regular $15 for that day or was it $70 total for that day? Not that it really matters that much, just curious. I agree that having to get up and get a lounger early in the morning kind of defeats the purpose of booking the whole cruise. It is frustrating that they cannot seem to work out a common policy for all ships in the fleet. I can understand jacking the price for a popular day (e.g. PC day) for additional revenue, but what are they achieving by not allowing the people who pay for the whole cruise to choose their lounger? Other than making people unhappy. Seems to me, this should be one of the perks of giving them the money up front for the whole time. At least they know they have that seat sold for the entire cruise. Maybe they'll see enough complaints on here and fix this. Even so, we will probably still do the entire cruise if we can. We'll decide as we go if we need to run up and reserve a lounger each morning or if we'll just show up and pick from what's left.

 

Thanks again for the first-hand information!

 

Rob (Sandy's DH)

[mk0520]

Hi Rob,

The $70.00 was for the Panama Canal. We did not have to pay $15.00 extra. It was packed on that day. I agree with you regarding having to go every day to choose a lounge chair & we did complain about this but the staff are just doing their job. We did write about this at the end of the cruise when they want your feed back. It just doesn't make sense to me that other ships allow you to do this but not Island Princess. The Coral is the sister ship of the Island and according to chamina they were allowed to choose their chairs for the week. Go figure!!!

[sandyoftheseas]

Hi Rob,

The $70.00 was for the Panama Canal. We did not have to pay $15.00 extra. It was packed on that day. I agree with you regarding having to go every day to choose a lounge chair & we did complain about this but the staff are just doing their job. We did write about this at the end of the cruise when they want your feed back. It just doesn't make sense to me that other ships allow you to do this but not Island Princess. The Coral is the sister ship of the Island and according to chamina they were allowed to choose their chairs for the week. Go figure!!!

 

I wonder which officer is responsible for setting policy in the Sanctuary. Maybe I can try to catch up with him/her while onboard to get an explanation of why they have a different policy than the rest of the Princess ships. If I can, I'll report back and let you know what I find out.

 

Rob (Sandy's DH)