REVIEW - Sea Princess Sydney to NZ 12 Nov 2011

[NthNSW]

Thank you for providing such a comprehensive report of your experience on the Sea Princess! It's answered some of the little questions that you have inside your head, and uncovered new things I wasn't aware of!

I will be cruising to New Zealand on the Sea Princess for 13 days from December 29th (this year). It will be my first cruise, and the first time I have been overseas. I will be going with my parents who have been on P&Os Pacific Sky and Pacific Sun, and also my brother and his fiance.

 

I will going on the "Auckland Museum & City Drive" tour, "Te Puia Thermal Reserve, Maori Arts & Agrodome" tour, "Scenic Drive, Pernel Fruit & Silky Oaks Chocolate" tour (Napier/Hastings), "Te Papa Museum & Cable Car" tour, "Trans Alpine Train & Arthur's Pass" tour, and the "Dunedin City Drive & Larnach Castle" tour. Have chose not to go on a tour at the Bay of Islands as they didn't interest me enough. Glad to hear there are free shuttles into Paihia from Waitangi Wharf (thought we'd have to pay a taxi fare).

 

I just have a few questions. I hope you don't mind answering them for me please. :-)

1. Is the Cafe Corniche free of charge?

2. Are there any "theme nights" onboard?

3. Can anybody join the Princess Pop choir, even if your voice isn't great (well not even good, lol)? And when were rehearsals typically held?

4. Where does one go to find out all the activities that will be available when you first board the ship? (In particular, Trivia Nights/Sessions)

5. Can you remember how often the free shuttles operated at Paihia?

6. Does the Sundaes bar still exist?

7. What were the demographics of the ship during your cruise? (e.g. predominately elderly, or middle-aged, or young)

8. Were the power points on the ship Australian? (i.e. you didn't have to rent/purchase an adapter thingy to use the power to recharge your mobile, camera, laptop etc.)

9. Was water free of charge? I would assume soft drinks are not free of charge, if so, what is the price of getting a soft drink?

Thanking you in advance, sorry for all the questions! lol

[didiaust]

Anne thanks for your review/report. I have been anxiously awaiting each post as we are off to NZ on PD in January. I also took note of you rugging up and then sweltering - that would be me. I find it hard dressing for change of temps so NZ will be quite a challenge.

 

Interested in the possum socks - are they better than wool socks or is it just a novelty. If you think of any other goodies to buy please let me know

 

I am wondering the best spot on PD to spend time when in Fiordland

 

Di

[Sandielle]

Hi NthNSW and welcome to OzCC. I am soon to have the pleasure of cruising with Princess, so I cannot tell you anything from experience. I know however that every night you will have the Princess Patters delivered to your cabin - a daily paper which has all the "what, where, when" for the following day as well as any other information applicable to your cruise.

 

Oh...and take a power board. Most Australian-based ships have just the one Australian power point in the cabin.

 

As you can see, there will be many helpful cruisers along soon to answer all of your questions. :) :) :)

[Izabelle]

Great review Anne, really enjoyed all the details and great info you mentioned on both sea days and port days, we should have been on the cruise just before yours on the 30th Oct but alas we never made it due to the Qantas strike.

 

However all's well that ends well and we are heading off on the Diamond Princess in Jan, making it a B2B to make up for it :D:)

 

Thanks again for a very good review!!

[johndon]

Excellent stuff Anne. You have covered details I would never think of but I suppose it is a woman's observations. My wife loved it. We are doing the "Sun" NZ cruise in March and we now know of many things to look out for thanks to you.

 

John

[Raison]

I enjoyed reading your review, thank you for taking the time to post it. Lots of interesting observations and tips in it too.:)

[aussie57]

I just have a few questions. I hope you don't mind answering them for me please. :-)

1. Is the Cafe Corniche free of charge?

2. Are there any "theme nights" onboard?

3. Can anybody join the Princess Pop choir, even if your voice isn't great (well not even good, lol)? And when were rehearsals typically held?

4. Where does one go to find out all the activities that will be available when you first board the ship? (In particular, Trivia Nights/Sessions)

5. Can you remember how often the free shuttles operated at Paihia?

6. Does the Sundaes bar still exist?

7. What were the demographics of the ship during your cruise? (e.g. predominately elderly, or middle-aged, or young)

8. Were the power points on the ship Australian? (i.e. you didn't have to rent/purchase an adapter thingy to use the power to recharge your mobile, camera, laptop etc.)

9. Was water free of charge? I would assume soft drinks are not free of charge, if so, what is the price of getting a soft drink?

Thanking you in advance, sorry for all the questions! lol

 

Thanks. Happy to answer your questions. Especially on your first cruise there are lots of things that don't occur to you until you encounter them & it's handy to be able to pick up tips if you can.

1.Yes Cafe Corniche is free & is open for lunch & dinner

2.I'm told there are Island Nights, Country & Western & Rock and Roll nights on Princess & there are certainly themed activities as such on certain nights but there was a lot less adherence to the themes with dressing up than on P&O Aust. If there was an Island night on the NZ itinerary we completely missed it LOL

3. Anyone who likes singing can join the choir - there are no auditions. We had choir practise either 9.30-10ish or 1.30-2ish depending on the day & therewasn't one every day because of it being such a port intensive itinerary

4. As Sandie said the Princess Patter is delivered to your cabin around 8pm each night. We always take a highlighter so we can mark the things we don't want to miss. :)

5. At Paihere the shuttles were running continuously until about 4ish. They always tell you the time of the last shuttle & the last tender. Shuttles returning to the tender wharf went via y=the Waitangi Treaty Grounds until the last hour or so when they went straight back to the wharf. You could gett off & wander around then walk to the tender yourself or catch the next returning shuttle.

6 Yes the ice cream bar is there on Deck 12 I think but we didn't use it. Apparently the smoothies & milkshakes are really good & you can get them cheaper if you buy the Soda & more package. Good if you plan on drinking lots of sodas, shakes etc.

7. We had babies, honeymooners, teenagers, 40somethings & 50+ right up to elderly. We sat with an 87yr old at dinner each night. So a smattering of everything but probably the majority would have been in the 50-80yr age group. I know they kept joking that there were only 3 people in the night club! As you are going in school holidays there will be more young families with kids. As a rule Princess caters for a more mature crowd, especially if the cruise is longer than about 10days, & P&O more for the party crowd but each has a bit of everything.

8. There's one Aussie power point above the bench next to the fridge. We took a power board as Allan has a CPap machine, plus we had the laptop & recharged our phones & batteries.

9. Free iced water is always available in all food & beverage venues as well as 24hrs in the buffet. The tap water is desalinated onboard & perfectly safe to drink. It depends on personal taste as to whether people like it or not but we found it quite palatable. You can purchase 1litre bottled water & sodas from your bar fridge - $3ish for the water & $2.50ish for the cans of "soda". I take my own diet soft drinks because I don't like diet coke. You can take your own soft drinks aboard.

You can also buy soda cards & soda plus more cards as mentioned above. Someone correct me if necessary but I think the soda card's about $9pp per day & gives you unlimited fountain soft drinks.

Hope that helps :D

[aussie57]

Interested in the possum socks - are they better than wool socks or is it just a novelty. If you think of any other goodies to buy please let me know

I am wondering the best spot on PD to spend time when in Fiordland

Di

 

Hi Di

We bought possum socks for my Dad on our NZ cruise in 2007 & he put in an order for more as soon as he knew we were going back :D

 

The possum fur is blended with merino wool & produces a really soft fabric which feels a bit like cashmere. They make scarves, gloves, beanies, jumpers, wraps etc out of it & it's pretty pricey. Anyone I've spoken to who's worn it has sworn by it for it's added warmth. A lady in a wool shop in Akaroa told me that possum blend items won't wear well for work sox etc so if you want something hard-wearing you're better to stick to straight wool. But for warmth & softness thay are great.

 

Are you going on Dawn Princess or Pacific Dawn? If the former the views in Fjordland are best appreciated from on deck if the weather's not too inclement - probably somewhere up high so you can see 180deg or so in case there are seals or something which aren't directly in front of you. I was on Deck 14 by the railing on the Port side but eventually moved over to a spot overlooking the pool deck as I could see towards the front as well as to the side.

[didiaust]

Thanks again Anne

 

We are on Pacific Dawn so I am not familiar with the ship and the layout

 

Guess I have to buy at least 1 possum product

 

Di

[Aus Traveller]

Yes the ice cream bar is there on Deck 12 I think but we didn't use it. :D

The icecream bar is on deck 12, port side, towards the rear of the ship from the pool. Icecream is free. If you just ask for icecream they will give you soft serve - chocolate or vanilla. If you want 'normal icecream' you have to specify 'hard icecream'. It is available in a cone or a cardboard cup. I didn't note down the times, but the icecream bar is open all day and into the evening.

 

My husband was probably their best customer when we were on the Sun Princess. He loves his icecream :D probably too much!!

[aussie57]

We are on Pacific Dawn so I am not familiar with the ship and the layout

Di

Hi Di

Can't help you with that either sorry as I haven't been on PD. I know Sandie has sailed on her so she may be able to suggest viewing spots for the sounds

....Saaan-dieee - you out there?? :D

[Sandielle]

I'm here! :) Di, the jogging track - Deck 14 - is good. The back decks, 12, 11 and 10 are also good. If you want the view at the front, you can go along Deck 10 on the starboard side and get out to a small viewing deck. (It's right under the bridge so you can wave to the captain or whoever is there! :D)

 

If it is very windy, cold and wet, the Dome at the front of Deck 14 is good, but you would probably have to fight for a window. :eek:

[Debsta]

Loved the review Anne. Thanks :D

[didiaust]

I'm here! :) Di, the jogging track - Deck 14 - is good. The back decks, 12, 11 and 10 are also good. If you want the view at the front, you can go along Deck 10 on the starboard side and get out to a small viewing deck. (It's right under the bridge so you can wave to the captain or whoever is there! :D)

 

If it is very windy, cold and wet, the Dome at the front of Deck 14 is good, but you would probably have to fight for a window. :eek:

 

 

KISSES KISSES XXXXOOOOOXXXX SANDIE

 

Just what I wanted to know

 

Di

[Sandielle]

Aaaaaawwwwwwww Di! Glad to be of help. :o

[me429sb]

Thanks for the great review Anne. We're on the Sea Princess to NZ on 16Dec11. Your review was very helpful and I've marked the front of deck 10 on my Deck plans to make sure we check it out.

 

Michelle:D

[bvm49]

Just love your review Anne. :) I'm picking out the parts pertinent to our Sun Princess cruise as a reference. Re the choir - do they sing in parts (SATB) or in unison?

 

Also, is smoking allowed in parts of any public rooms? On our personaliser it states there will be a policy change on 15 Jan 2012 - no more smoking in staterooms but on some decks and some public rooms. I think this is for American based ships. (As you know, P&O allow smoking on some of the open decks only, and I was hoping it would be the same on Aussie Princess.)

 

We’ve just come off the Sun Princess and my DW joined the pop choir. It was run by one of the cruise director’s staff, Natalie who was a real character. She made it fun but kept it simple with not much harmony. She chose popular songs & supplied the words only. She claimed that it was the best choir she’s ever had; but after the performance admitted she has never done it before.

There were about 25 in the choir who wore black with some red. My DW borrowed a red scarf to go with her black outfit. The only negative was that the rehearsals were at 12.30. During the last afternoon the choir performed 5 songs in the Vista Lounge (the alternative theatre) to a large and appreciative audience.

[aussie57]

There were about 25 in the choir who wore black with some red. My DW borrowed a red scarf to go with her black outfit. The only negative was that the rehearsals were at 12.30. During the last afternoon the choir performed 5 songs in the Vista Lounge (the alternative theatre) to a large and appreciative audience.

On ours we were asked to wear any combination of black &/or white, & I think I mentioned that rehearsals were around 9.30am or 1.30pm. Must depend on whoever schedules all the different activities

[Floridiana]

Thank you for the great review. I have taken notes for our February cruise around NZ on Sea Princess.

[kylan]

Hi,

 

Anne enjoyed your review, and picked up some good tips and ideas. We will be cruising on the the Sea Princess in 7 days, it sounds like we will be cruising with NthNSW.

 

My question was about how they charge for the on ship costs - whether it is charged in US currency or is it in Australian dollars. The question about using Global Card Services to do the conversion also had me scratching my head.:confused:

 

Any feedback would be great,

 

cheers

[Aus Traveller]

Aussie dollars on Sea Princess.

[kylan]

Thanks for that, and just had DOH! moment when printing out the boarding passes and travel summary when read at bottom that folio would be charged in AUD. :o

[Cush1964]

Happy to answer any questions for any who want info on Sea Princess.

This was only our 2nd cruise on Princess - our first was on Sapphire in 2007, also to NZ & after so many recent cruises on P&O Aust we did notice some little subtle things that we think make Princess superior. It helped that we weren't sailing in school holidays. Apparently there were only 150 kids aboard & we very rarely saw any & they certainly weren't running wild in hordes unsupervised & pushing all the lift buttons like they were on the Jewel in June!

 

EMBARKATION

Arrived at Wharf 5 around 11.15, dropped the bags & checked in with wheelchair registration. Got our platinum cards & were in the 3rd group for preferred embarkation seeing us onboard in our cabin just after 12. We were pleasantly surprised by our O/V cabin on Deck 8 because we could see over the top of the lifeboat & there was adequate daylight - heaps better than inside. Although the cabin had fixed twin beds (which we knew would be the case) there was heaps of storage room & our empty bags fitted under the bed.

I had read on the Princess forum that a MDR is always open for lunch on turnaround & the Patter in the cabin suggested as much. However when we went to the Dining Room an attendant said it was closed for a private function & that we should go to Horizon Court which we did.

Our bags were in our cabin by 2.30pm so we were able to get unpacked before muster drill & sailaway. With our platinum cards attached to our lanyards, we felt really special when all the crew members we came across greeted us with "Welcome back"

We saw the Maitre'd to find out if our allocated table for 1st seating dinner was wheelchair accessible ( which it wasn't) - so were allocated a new table number.

Another tip we'd picked up from reading the boards was about the bow viewing area at the front of Deck 10 so we made our way there for sailaway & we may as well have had a private balcony with only 4 other people being there as well. It was a beautiful day on the harbour so sailaway was quite spectacular & we sailed through the heads about 5pm.

At dinner we found ourselves on a Table for 6 in the Traviata Dining Room. Our waiters were Zaldy & Jonnel, both from the Philippines, & they were both wonderful throughout the cruise, especially with Allan's gluten free diet, as was the Head Waiter, Alex from Mexico. Our waiters were also lots of fun. After this first night we didn't see one couple from our table again for the whole cruise. The lady of the 2nd couple had boarded sick so she & her husband were quarantined for several days & she ended up in the medical centre on a drip, after which she had a bad reaction to acupuncture & was on crutches & in a wheelchair by the end of the cruise. So they didn't come back to the MDR either which left us as the only people on our table. This wasn't much fun as we like traditional dining for the company, especially on the 2nd sea day when I had a birthday celebration, although all the waiters from the section joined in serenading me.

With the current policy of traditional dining on the Aussie-based Princess ships it seems that a percentage of pax who don't like it for one reason or another just don't come back to their allocated table, choosing the buffet, pizza cafe or steakhouse instead. So there were 2 spare seats night after night at a nearby table for 8 & by the 3rd night we asked the Head waiter if we could move there. From then on we were part of that table & had a fabulous time with our table mates & were still with our original waiters.

 

Great review ... Thanks! Did the Sea Princess have any enrichment lectures onboard explaining Maori culture in any of the Ports you visited?

[bobhsv]

Great review ... Thanks! Did the Sea Princess have any enrichment lectures onboard explaining Maori culture in any of the Ports you visited?

 

I may be able to answer as we were on same cruise as Anne and Allan. They had all the usual port lectures which were also televised at a later time. In Auckland at 4.30pm there was a maori show in the theatre (also direct telecast to muts). The show "Haka the Legend" was excellent and the theatre was packed out. It consisted of maori dancers and a maori storyteller. Highly interesting, informative and entertaining. I believe this show is the same that people pay for at the museum.

You will love all of NZ...have a great cruise.

Jen

[happysnapper]

Anne thanks for taking the time to discuss all the ports of call. in NZ. DH and I sail on the Sea Princess 20th February (following a Sth Sea Island cruise). Every bit if information from CCs who have gone before us will most certainly help us have a full and wonderful trip. Much appreciated.

Glennys