Live From The Sun!

[Host Anne]

Sorry, Greg, that I don't know about the balcony dinner. We never looked into it so I don't know whether or not it is offered.

 

We arrived at the port about 11:15 AM. They had not opened the doors at that point. It was right around 11:30 when they began letting people in. There was Princess staff at the door handing out a Bahamas immigration form and the Health verification form. Be sure to complete both of these before going any further (we sat on the benches outside and completed them to avoid the masses inside at the tall tables they had set up to complete the forms on).

 

Deb ~ thanks for telling Tomas hello. I even thought the coffee in the Horizon Court was OK. :)

 

Didn't get the review started last night -- laptop problems persist. I'll try tonight!

[cruzzers]

Sorry, Greg, that I don't know about the balcony dinner. We never looked into it so I don't know whether or not it is offered.

 

We arrived at the port about 11:15 AM. They had not opened the doors at that point. It was right around 11:30 when they began letting people in. There was Princess staff at the door handing out a Bahamas immigration form and the Health verification form. Be sure to complete both of these before going any further (we sat on the benches outside and completed them to avoid the masses inside at the tall tables they had set up to complete the forms on).

 

Deb ~ thanks for telling Tomas hello. I even thought the coffee in the Horizon Court was OK. :)

 

Didn't get the review started last night -- laptop problems persist. I'll try tonight!

Host Anne,

Looking forward to seeing your review. Thanks for answering so many questions for us. You mentioned that the line was bad because of th Bahamas immigration and Health forms. Are those the same ones they send us to fill out pre-cruise? We filled out everything on line already and I called Princess to verify that they had all the paperwork they needed from us. I guess I am asking if this is something new or something we can fill out ahead of time?

[iluvcruzin]

Thanks for answering our questions. I have another.. Are the cabin doors on the Sun coated? Meaning.. Will I be able to put a magnet on it for a door decoration? Sorry if this seems like a silly question but I've been on some ships where it works.. some that it doesn't.

[LisaH]

I am new this newsgroup thing. How do I find the roll call post you are talking about?

 

thanks

[Host Anne]

The two forms you are handed at the port are not forms that you have filled out with your pre-cruise documents. These are totally separate forms that must be completed at the port as they are original forms that must be signed. Everyone has to complete them before being allowed through security.. The real challenge was for foreign visitors (don't have time to explain at the moment but I mentioned it probably back on page 4 or 5 of this thread and will detail it in my review).

 

Yes, the doors on the Sun are metal so they should therefore take a magnet. I didn't try it, however. Sometimes the doors could have a non-conductive paint on them (we are in the coatings business) that may not allow a magnet but I'm guessing these doors do.

[Gord & Pat]

I am new this newsgroup thing. How do I find the roll call post you are talking about?

 

thanks

Just scroll down on the main page to roll calls, click on Princess, then scroll down again till you find the Sun on the 17th. Nice group, everyone counting days:) . Everyone meeting on ship (just read posts). Hope to see you there.

[cruiserforlife]

Morning all!

 

Here I am,having resufaced in Monterey.

 

I apoligize about not being able to sign off properly.The SB ending so late on the ship (10:30) and I was dead tired ao I didn't post before I fell asleep.I didn't realize that I my folio would have been closed out and that I wouldn't be able to use the computers.My wife said she told me so but I guess I never listen to her...I guess I should start!.

 

I really felt like I left a lot of people hanging because after 10 days of answering questions and posting about my cruise...poof! It was all over before I knew it and I wasn't able to say goodbye properly.

 

I am back at my desk now and I just wanted to say it was great taking everyone along for the ride last week.I'm glad 'Chris is keeping this thread going.

 

cruzzers,

 

I did go down and check out your room but I couldn't post back.Although it appears to be right underneath B605,it actually isn't because the Baja deck is completely straight whereas the Dolphin deck curves a little to make way for the tenders.Your room is about 20 steps away from the Casino so if you like to spend time there,you're ok.The downside is that there is quite a heavy cigarette smoke odor in that area at times.If this is bothersome to you,this may be a problem.Sorry I couldn't report this information to you sooner.You are correct about these Sun ships sailing at full capacity.

 

Anne,

 

It was truly a pleasure meeting you and Andy.It was because of you that this whole cruise was as anticipated by us as it was.You made us all feel excited and I just wish we could have spent more time with you both and our group.Andy sure could have helped me consume my MM.

 

18 Lobster tails!Yes,a new personal record and perhaps a ship record as well,who knows.I pushed the bar up as high as I could because we don't know when the next cruise will be for us with our new home purchase.The food on the Sun was fantastic all cruise long and anyone who will cruise her will not be disappointed.

 

patti o,

 

Juliet was fantastic and is a great asset to Princess and the Sun.We filled out our "You made a difference" cards and completed one for her.She did everything she said she would and followed through completely.A true professional.

 

My final 'net charges were $384 so yes,this is a great perk for Elite & Platinum members.

 

There are professional dance instructors onboard teaching different forms of dancing but we didn't take any classes.

 

High marks to Virginia our room steward who was excellent and Miguel our PC waiter in the Marquis dining room.Both of these people went out of their way to insure we had a fantastic time.We wouldn't be out of our room sometimes for more than 15 minutes and Virginia would have our room re-set.She was fantastic.Miguel always had a "no problem" attitude and always made us feel welcome.

 

All in all,we had a fantastic cruise and would highly recommend the Sun Princess to anyone who is interested in cruising her.Don't believe all the negative comments that have been posted in the past.She is in fantastic shape and has a wonderful staff that will take care of your every need.

 

I see Anne has answered many questions and I will be happy to throw in my 2 cents worth as well.

 

Talk to you all soon and thank you all for taking the ride with us!

 

CFL

[ciana]

HI As I posted earlier, we too really enjoyed our cruise on the Sun and wouldn't hesitate to go again. Re: Embarkation. We arrived by 11:30 and only waited a short while for the line to start moving. As we are Canadian we went to the Non-US line but we did not experience any of the problems that host Anne's friends had. We were given our Bahamas Immigration forms (for Princess Cays), filled them out at the tables and moved into line. Actually our line was much shorter than the US line so we moved quickly along. I don't know why the others had problems.. maybe changeover of staff or we came along after their problems had been resolved. On this particular sailing there were over 500 Canadians aboard.

 

Happy sailing!

 

Cheri:)

[cruiserforlife]

Grego,

 

There is no Balcony Dinner offered on the Sun Princess as far as I know and we would have certainly been informed if there had been...Princess is great about killing lot's of trees!Great Champagne Breakfast though!

 

Ya Ya,

 

My wife stated that the coffee was excellent in the dining room.

[CruisinChris]

Hi All!

 

 

I'm a little late today since we were out at 7:30 to sit in our chairs by the pool (the weather has been FAB todayand the seas very calm!).

 

Let's see - there are some tidbits from embarkation day that I forgot about. I watched them load boxes of "teak decking system" and pallets of adhesive on board in FLL. Yesterday and today they have been replacing teak decking on deck 12 aft. There are about 8 guys who came onboard to do the work (and they kind of remind me of some of the Harley Club guys I see out on their bikes in the Western burbs of Chicago).

 

Yesterday the weather was pretty overcast and a little too cool for my taste to sit by the pool (70 degrees, lots of wind and ship moving 20 knots does not equal pool time!) Last night was formal night. We tried the lobster thermidor last night instead of the fillet of beef. It was ok - I think that if it had been made with Maine lobster rather than Florida it might have had more flavor.

 

I have to give huge kudos to Juliet, the Captain's Circle Hostess. She goes above and beyond to take care of her Elite people. SHe has been a huge help to me in making this birthday trip for my extra extra special. I can't post the details here yet, in case Mom logs in, but I can tell you she is going to be totally blown away. Best of all, she was so pouty at dinner last night because so many people around us were getting cakes and she didn't get one. Ha, ha!! I love surprises!!

 

One thing that blew ME away yesterday was the Captain's Wlecome Aboard party. This Captain is beyond friendly. He actually arrived in the Atrium right on time and rather than just standing and giving his introductions and speech, he actually "worked the room". He came over into the Atrium bar and spoke with every table on the Starboard side, answering questions, joking, posing for numerous pictures! His officers followed suit. I haven't seen this since our first Princess cruise on the old Star Princess in 1997.

 

We hit the casino last night (which wasn't that busy) and didn't have any real luck. I did better in the afternoon.

 

Tonight we're hitting Sterling Steakhouse.

 

More later!

[mkk]

CFL..glad you got home safe and sound....

How is your weather in CA?

Our friends got back and had a good time also..didn't have quite as many rave reviews about the food..said the entertainment was very good..seas were choppy but they didn't care..(they are fishing buddies of ours and are used to 30 miles offshore in a 26ft boat). I don't know when we'll cruise again either..we don't have one booked and probably won't get to do one til at least December :(

Anyway..enjoyed your day to day updates...

Good luck with your new home (that's exciting too!!!)

CruisinChris..

Sounds like you are enjoying the Sun so far...Nice to have a personable Captain..makes the atmosphere of the entire ship better in my opinion!

We never have much luck in the casino either!

Are you going to Dominica on this sailing? It is truly my favorite island for sheer beauty..Have fun!

[cozzello]

Hi Chris So happy that you are having better weather than the past few weeks. You missed the snow here in Chicago (only an inch or so) and it has turned cold here again. Enjoy the sun and warm water. Do they have a walking deck on the Sun, where is it located please? Thanks

[cruiserforlife]

cozzello,

 

The walking deck you are referring to is called the Promanade deck )located on deck 7) which is made of teak (unlike fake teak-like composite on the newer ships) and goes all the way around the ship...3 laps=1 mile.They ask that you don't run on it before 8am.

 

mkk,

 

Yes,we did make it home in one piece but the flight from FL to LA was a very 5+ hrs. long and ran late so to make our connecting flight to San Jose,we had to literally run through the airport and caught the tram just in time.

The weather here is overcast with some sun peaking through at times but with the AT&T this wknd,I predict it should be pouring by Saturday.

 

I found no complaints with the food whatsoever so I'd be curious as to what they didn't like.

 

'Chris,

 

Yes,Juliet is fantastic and follows up on everything she says she will.We nominated her with a "You made the difference" comment card.

 

The Lobster Thermidor was ok but not enough lobster in it and too much creamy stuff for my tastes.Hopefully,you'll like the broiled Lobster better.

 

The captain is quite friendly and humorous as well.At the most traveled cocktail party in the Library,when he asked a friend of ours where they were from and they stated Long Island,his first comment was "mmm,ice tea!" so based on that,I'm figuring William Kent knows the business end of a bottle of scotch.Very witty guy though with a dry sense of humor although a very slooow way about the mic!

[psupa]

Grego,

 

There is no Balcony Dinner offered on the Sun Princess as far as I know and we would have certainly been informed if there had been...Princess is great about killing lot's of trees!Great Champagne Breakfast though!

 

Ya Ya,

 

My wife stated that the coffee was excellent in the dining room.

 

Welcome back. Was wondering what is all included in the Champagne breakfast and how much notice do you have to give the ship.

[cruiserforlife]

psupa,

 

The Champagne Breakfast ($25/couple) was a lot of food.It included assorted pastries,a fruit plate,a mini crab quiche,and alaskan crab legs with a half bottle of Moet & Chandon champagne.We also ordered coffee & assorted juices.They leave you a form to fill out the night before and you leave it on your door as you would your regular breakfast requests.We circled 8-8:30 and it arrived about 2 minutes after 8.

[JUST CRUZIN]

Just wanted to be in on the thread for all those up dates. FYI, if you are in a Suite you may order from the dining room menu to your cabin. They place a new complete set of all the menus daily in the suite for you use. We tried it and loved it!!!

[srpilo]

This thread is absolutly one of my ALL TIME favorites :D :D :D

 

Ok guys.. since I'll be on the Dawn next week, I'm curious how the pool/ocean water tempertures are, and have you found the snorkling/swimming comfortable ??? How about the water at Princess Cays ??

 

Once again I'll have to add my Thanks for all your past and future posts, they've been the high-lite of these pass 10 days here on CC..:)

 

 

Srpilo

[patti o]

Cruzin'Chris,

 

Let us know how the b'day surprise goes. I'm eager to hear all the fun things you have lined up.

 

And yes, our experience with Juliet, as I posted way back at the beginning of CFL's voyage, was outstanding. Even though it was her first month, she went above and beyond. If she didn't have the answer, which was rare, she follow-up and got it for us immediately. We, too, completed a "You Made The Difference" cards for her. And again as I said way back when on this post, she is an excellent representative for Princess, very professional and just a pleasure.

 

Hope you have calm seas and gentle breezes!

[Host Anne]

Srpilo ~ the temperature of the pools on the Sun were warmer than bath water. Just right for me. One night I think we just sat in the pool for two hours and chatted with other passengers. It was great. The hot tubs weren't much warmer, however. I'm referring to the hot tubs aft (we didn't try the hot tubs by the main pool). But we still enjoyed the hot tubs several times even though they weren't very warm. :)

 

The water at Princess Cays was "chilly." Further south, the water was pretty nice but other than walking along the edge of the water, PC was too cold for me. It was a beautiful day, however. In fact, the nicest weather day of the entire cruise. And PC is very, very pretty.

 

Have a great cruise!

[gvre]

Just cruzin,

You mentioned you were in a suite. We are booked in the Portafino suite D-753 for the 14 day Nov. cruise. Which deck were you on? And did you enjoy the suite and all the perks.

Thanks

Richard

[Bonnie-Jean]

Hi,

 

 

We are booked in D753-Suite for March 19, 2005 on Sun Princess. Would love to know what it is like and what perks to expect. Thanks...

 

Love all the information about the Sun Princess....

 

Bonnie:)

[JUST CRUZIN]

Bonnie & Richard, YES we did enjoy the Suite. You have hit the Jackpot!!!!! Although D753 is the Sorrento Suite on the starboard side, D750 is the Portifino Suite on the Port side. Both of these suits are the only 700 sq ft suites on the ship. We had the Sorrento which was truly enormous in size. Francisco from Mexico was the steward and he did a fine job.

 

You will have a little perk handbook in the cabin to refer to. It consists of things like the Elite perks plus Canapés of your choosing everyday at 4pm, free laundry, shoe shine, flower arrangement for the cabin, flowers for you and your bride on formal nights as well as caviar and other fine treats formal nights. You can have a private session with the ships photographer in the cabin if you like as well. Besides the all the chocolate covered strawberries, we really liked the full access to all the dining room menus in the cabin for room service as well as just to know what was for dinner that night in advance. I have never had such a private balcony either. I could not hear or see any of our neighbors.

 

You have a huge walk-in closet and huge L shaped 2 room bath with Jacuzzi tub. Let me know if you need any more info…. We got the Suite as an upgrade from a BB balcony. I’m not sure what it would cost PP normally.

[cruiserforlife]

Hey Anne & Jack!

 

In answering the pool temperature question:it was all over the board for us and I like to swim everyday.One day we went in and it was so hot we almost couldn't stand it.The next day it was just right but everybody I spoke to was still talking about the day it was a "hot tub".Speaking of which,we used them quite alot and found the temps to be just about right for us,not real hot both by the main pool area and in the aft area at night under the stars.

 

The water at PC was kinda chilly at first but was actually nice after you were in it for a while.Of course if the sun would have been out longer and it would have been a warmer day,it would have been just about perfect.

 

All in all, a great day and a perfect way to end the cruise.

 

JC supposedly had the "killer" suite but we didn't get a chance to see it.This just proves that the "upgrade fairy" does exsist and it couldn't have gone to a nicer couple.I enjoyed talking drag racing and performance cars with you Jack!

 

Got my pictures back yesterday...great to re-live the memories.

 

Talk to everyone later,

 

CFL

[Shelby Cruiser]

Just watching on bridge cam for arrival at St. Vincent today. It looks very calm & sunny for you. Hope you enjoy your 1/2 day there. We have been thoroughly enjoying all the comments on this thread ever since it was started, as we will be sailing on Feb. 27 to these same ports. I know there is not that much time in port to do a lot of things but if you have time can you tell us if there is any quick shopping areas near the pier. We have booked the Ft. Charlotte, Botanic Gardens & Scenic Dr. tour & will only have few minutes left for quick look at shopping area before have to reboard. Could there possibly be some vendors set up there. Hoping the seas have been cooperating & that it hasn't been too windy to enjoy the pool. Tell us your impression of this island. Thanking you in advance for all the info you can give plus for all that has been shared. :)

[gvre]

Thanks Just Cruzin!

 

Your post got us very excited! Your right we are in D-750

 

We were kind of disappointed about not getting the larger balcony on the suite above us. I never considered that we would have a completely private balcony:D!

 

I know the balcony is covered...are you able to get any sun on it? Our cabin is directly above the Vista Lounge stage...do you think we'll hear the shows?

 

Debbie