just off the sapphire

[CulverCityCruisers]

what the bedding like??

 

hard or pillow top??

HARD as ROCKS no pillow tops in standard cabins. We were on Sapphire in April for 14 day Hawaii and just got two egg crates and it was fine. Since we live in L.A. I brought pillows (bought at Ross for $8) too! Left them in the trash. THE BEST CRUISE EVER!!!

[abqmommyof4]

We didnt find the beds uncomfortable at all, but it may be that we were so tired at the end of each day that we just didnt notice, but then again DH and I prefer a harder mattress.

 

Our biggest issue is the fact that they slide the 2 beds together and we slide between the 2 beds... ( the gap)

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for your short and to the point review of your cruise on the Sapphire. Looking forward to a cormplete review later.

[piscescruiser62]

Thanks for your response and for confirming what we thought. We always want to board as soon as possible and being told a mid-afternoon boarding time didn't sit well with us.

 

I would be interested to hear if anyone else has received this email stating a time to board based on your deck.

 

I read that today actually, it was not a e-mail I read but actually in Cruise Personalizer. On the right side there are choices and it is titled Important Notices". It listed times to check in based on what deck you are on. It is our first time on Princess and I thought that it was odd.

 

My husband and I are also on a California Coastal on the Sapphire departing April 27.

[seadrifter]

I read that today actually, it was not a e-mail I read but actually in Cruise Personalizer. On the right side there are choices and it is titled Important Notices". It listed times to check in based on what deck you are on. It is our first time on Princess and I thought that it was odd.

 

My husband and I are also on a California Coastal on the Sapphire departing April 27.

 

Hi piscescruiser62. Thanks for pointing out that it is in the Cruise Personalizer Notifications.

 

For those who haven't gotten the email, here it is:

 

PROGRESSIVE CRUISE CHECK-IN INFORMATION

To ensure a smooth start to your voyage, we operate a progressive embarkation

schedule. Please arrive at your check-in time listed below. If you have booked

a Princess Cruise Plus Package/Transfer, your check-in time will be provided at

your hotel or the airport. Passengers with a Preferred Boarding Pass may check-

in anytime during embarkation, although we kindly request you arrive during

your recommended time. Please do not arrive at the pier prior to 12:00 pm as

there is limited seating inside the terminal and your cabin will not be ready.

Boarding will commence shortly after check-in. Once onboard enjoy a meal at the

Horizon Court which remains open throughout the day to serve you. Thank you for

your cooperation. We look forward to welcoming you onboard.

 

12:30 pm - Caribe Deck / Cabins C100 - C757

1:30 pm - Baja & Lido Decks / Cabins B100 - B753, L200 - L311

2:00 pm - Dolphin & Emerald Decks / Cabins D102 - D741, E100 - E735

2:30 pm - Aloha & Plaza Decks / Cabins A104 - A751, P200 - P337

 

We are also sailing on the April 27 California Coastal. We did a similar Pacific Coastal a couple of years ago and really loved it. The only negative for me will be the long flights to LA and then home again (especially the home again flight because of the loss of 3 hours and because the cruise will be over :().

 

Edited to add: Happy New Year everyone!

[cruzsnooze]

April 6 2013 will be my 5th time on the Pacific Coastal on the Sapphire. That alone says i like her. The food is great, the service is great. The International cafe is wonderful. The ports have become familiar to me so I don't need to take any Princess excursions anymore. The beds are pillowtop in the mini suites which are a big improvement over the previous cement mattresses.

I do not care for the shorter shows, not worth going for a 30 minute show when you still need to arrive early to get decent seats.

I do like the muster drills being inside at a venue where you can sit and chit chat when they are not doing their safety demonstrations.

Escargot is still available. If I remember correctly our waiter told us about it.

My biggest disappointment is the dinning time. Princess web site has early seating at 6 PM but it's a lie, it's 5:30 and they refuse to change it to be accurate on their booking site. By the time you get back from port and dress it's dinner time, way to early. Why they cannot be accurate in this doesn't make any sense. I've asked the Matre D and he says to just come at 6 PM but i can't be rude to my table mates and disrupt the flow the waiter.

[dcruisers]

We also were on the Christmas sailing of the Sapphire...We really loved the ship. We had a balcony cabin on Caribe deck, very good size, lot of storage, ton of hangers in the closet. We had Alex as our steward and thought his service was lacking, we had to ask for every thing 2 or 3 times and he always had an excuse as to why we did not get it (sent to wrong cabin twice and crew drill)...We thought the food was good but very bland, no seasoning...we loved anytime dining...no waiting at 6156p and loved each of the anytime dining rooms. We thought the entertainment was good and enjoyed the music in the wheelhouse ...Ship was decorated beautifully for Christmas...We sailed from LA 3 hrs late due to fuel not being delivered...Did walkoff in LA and was in our car in the lot within 1/2 hour after getting our walk off call...All was good!!!

 

I appreciate your input too. We will be on the Caribe deck (C606) Jan. 19th and was wondering which room you had...hoping we don't have Alex! I so appreciate an efficient room steward and hope we don't have him!

Thanks.

[piscescruiser62]

April 6 2013 will be my 5th time on the Pacific Coastal on the Sapphire. That alone says i like her. The food is great, the service is great. The International cafe is wonderful. The ports have become familiar to me so I don't need to take any Princess excursions anymore. The beds are pillowtop in the mini suites which are a big improvement over the previous cement mattresses.

I do not care for the shorter shows, not worth going for a 30 minute show when you still need to arrive early to get decent seats.

I do like the muster drills being inside at a venue where you can sit and chit chat when they are not doing their safety demonstrations.

Escargot is still available. If I remember correctly our waiter told us about it.

My biggest disappointment is the dinning time. Princess web site has early seating at 6 PM but it's a lie, it's 5:30 and they refuse to change it to be accurate on their booking site. By the time you get back from port and dress it's dinner time, way to early. Why they cannot be accurate in this doesn't make any sense. I've asked the Matre D and he says to just come at 6 PM but i can't be rude to my table mates and disrupt the flow the waiter.

 

I am looking at upgrading my booking from BA(C532) to a Mini-Suite. It looks like the Emerald Deck covered balconies are only GTY. Which makes me wonder if I will really get a a mini-suite on the Emerald deck since there are so few of them.

 

There are quite a few available on the Dolphin deck which has uncovered balconies. Since you have been on this itinerary several times I would like your opinion on the uncovered balcony mini-suites. Is there a possibility of rain and a lot of mist for a late April cruises? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated. I would be giving up a larger balcony on the Caribe deck for the suite perks but also no longer having a covered balcony.

 

Any thoughts on this would be much appreciated.

[KruzPrincess]

I had an Emerald deck mini-suite and the bed was comfortable. I'm one of the biggest Princess bed haters, so I was surprised. I had brought my own foam topper with me and I didn't need it. I've heard others who were not in mini's lately say the beds were not comfortable, but this may not be true of all cabins.

[seadrifter]

I had an Emerald deck mini-suite and the bed was comfortable. I'm one of the biggest Princess bed haters, so I was surprised. I had brought my own foam topper with me and I didn't need it. I've heard others who were not in mini's lately say the beds were not comfortable, but this may not be true of all cabins.

 

Really glad we have a mini-suite.

[piscescruiser62]

Really glad we have a mini-suite.

 

Did you book a covered balcony mini-suite on Emerald or an uncovered Mini-suite on Dolphin? Making your decision did you have a preference or were you satisfied with either?

 

Also, we have a roll call for our April 27 sailing and would love you to join. It is getting a little livelier as we get closer.

[abqmommyof4]

We flew into LAX from albuquerque on Friday am 12/21. ( we were able to rearrange DS last final to earlier in the week- it really helps to be on good terms with teachers and the school) Since we had purchased a pre cruise package we were met at the airport by a Princess rep, who helped us get our luggage and brought us to the marriot pick up spot.

After checking into the hotel we relaxed a bit and then took a "tour bus" to manhatten beach where we walked around saw the little aquarium and had lunch at a local bar.

 

Dinner was uneventful at the local DENNY's ( except for the gas we all ended up with)

Breakfast the following am was oatmeal and coffee from Starbucks. We checked in with the Princess reps at 8 am, and waited until 12 or so to get on the busses to go to the ship. We were checked in and on the boat within about 15 minutes of getting to the pier ( at about 1 or so)

After getting to our staterooms and then going down to guest services to get new key cards ( boys are 20 and 16 so couldnt be booked in their own room- policy has changed as long as the reservation is linked to the parents there is no problem ) WE had lunch in the horizon court and set out to have a good time.

Boys enjoyed the sail away party although as a previously mentioned we didnt leave port until about 830. WE went to dinner at 530 in the Santa Fe Room, and because of my newly discovered gluten intolerance we were able to secure dinner reservations each night with the same crew.

Food was always wonderful and our waiters Dimiter and Eduardo were great, and took the time and effort to make sure my choices were gluten free,even bringing me sauces they knew were gluten free. Also they made sure had gluten free bread each night.

WE all purchased the Ultimate kids pack and it was well worth it, poor hubby didnt realize til midway through the cruise that milk shakes were included.

We played lots of trivia, I did the martini shake (although they probably would have sold more if they had the demonstration earlier in the week)I adore the milky way martini.

DH and the boys took the zip lining adventure in PV and enjoyed it, I stayed on board and just slept.

We didnt get off in Cabo and enjoyed the quiet, WE did get off in Encenada and walked around a bit, Its not as developed as the other ports, but I suspect that will come. Hardest thing for me was seeing little ( and I mean probably no more than 4 yr olds) selling trinkets.

The ship was decorated very nicely, but this trip was very bittersweet because part of our family wasnt there. Katy because she had to work and Emily because she is no longer with us. I am sure people around me wondered why the heck I was crying during the night before Christmas,

Dis embarkation went very well and they were actually running about 30 minutes ahead of time.

[abqmommyof4]

Forgot to mention we were in C314 and C324

 

Teenage son Don had a great time in teen remix and we were lucky to see him at dinner time. ( if I hadnt insisted we probably wouldnt have)

DS frank is 1 month shy of his 21st birthday, they had a wonderful program for the 18-21 group he had a good time.

[dcruisers]

We are assigned a cabin on caribe deck as well=C606 balcony. Did you have a balcony and if so, did it have the newer furniture?

Thanks.

[abqmommyof4]

we had inside cabins, and because we were really only in them to sleep they were fine

[cruzsnooze]

The Emerald deck Mini's sell quickly. If they are offering a GTY then they are all booked. The beds in the mini's are pillow top and much nicer then then the hard ones they used to have.

[junglejane]

It was a pleasure to meet you and your DH at the CC Meet and Greet. I'm so sorry about your loss. I'm glad that you were able to share this cruise with your two sons. Thanks for your review. It's always interesting to hear from others on the same cruise, and I hope some more of our Roll Call members chime in as well. :)

 

Dcruisers, we had a Caribe balcony cabin and it had the newer furniture. Unfortunately, it's not very comfortable. I thought the fabric was too stiff and the frame too narrow. I don't think of myself as an especially wide-bodied person but I felt cramped.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for your review.

[cvpends]

The ship was decorated very nicely, but this trip was very bittersweet because part of our family wasnt there. Katy because she had to work and Emily because she is no longer with us. I am sure people around me wondered why the heck I was crying during the night before Christmas,

 

Thank you for your review. I want to express my sympathy about your daughter Emily. Even though we know that she would have wanted you to have a fabulous time, I can imagine it would have been difficult to be without her. Sometimes, crying the night before Christmas makes sense. I hope you are doing okay overall. <big hugs>

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the review!

[dcruisers]

It was a pleasure to meet you and your DH at the CC Meet and Greet. I'm so sorry about your loss. I'm glad that you were able to share this cruise with your two sons. Thanks for your review. It's always interesting to hear from others on the same cruise, and I hope some more of our Roll Call members chime in as well. :)

 

Dcruisers, we had a Caribe balcony cabin and it had the newer furniture. Unfortunately, it's not very comfortable. I thought the fabric was too stiff and the frame too narrow. I don't think of myself as an especially wide-bodied person but I felt cramped.

 

Thank you for your info...guess new isn't always better!

Curious, (if you don't mind answering another question) how was your cabin steward?

[junglejane]

Curious, (if you don't mind answering another question) how was your cabin steward?

 

We had Alex. Someone else on this board complained about him, but we thought he was just fine. He was friendly and conscientious and we had no issues. If you read my review, you know that I was in "cabin isolation" for a while (about a day and a half). During that time, Alex was not allowed to clean my cabin and only the "hit squad" could clean it. But he was taking care of our kids' cabin and whenever we saw him he greeted us by name.

[caribill]

The Emerald deck Mini's sell quickly. If they are offering a GTY then they are all booked.

 

That is true if only a GTY is being offered.

 

Before, at least, the reclassification of cabins in the spring, a GTY is offered for all categories even if every cabin in that category is available.

[seadrifter]

Did you book a covered balcony mini-suite on Emerald or an uncovered Mini-suite on Dolphin? Making your decision did you have a preference or were you satisfied with either?

 

Also, we have a roll call for our April 27 sailing and would love you to join. It is getting a little livelier as we get closer.

 

 

Yes, we booked the covered mini-suite balcony on Emerald months ago. We have had this cabin on Caribbean Princess and loved it. It's the extended last balcony; windy while at sea but we love the extra space.

 

I would love to join the roll call and may consider doing so. DH prefers to keep our cruise experience more private. I have to respect his wishes. Nevertheless, I look forward to a great cruise April/May of this year and hope everyone has a great time:).

[Ahhh]

Can anyone tell me if Bruce is still the pianist in Crooners? Looking forward to stepping on board in a week.