Considering a Princess cruise and have a few question??

[crazytomatoes]

Good Day,

My husband and I are considering booking with Princess for the first time for a British Isles cruise in 2019. We have cruised on Celebrity and Holland America in the past. We really like the itinerary for the 2018 British Isles cruises and are excited to give Princess a try in 2019. I have a few questions. When do the 2019 cruises become available to book? It appears the Royal princess is the ship that regularly sails this itinerary, however having said that I do understand that sometimes things change. We have had aft cabins in the past and enjoy them, does anyone have photos of an aft cabin and balcony on Royal Princess? We plan to book a balcony cabin, any suggestions? We like Mid ship or aft cabins. Any other tips or suggestions for this ship are welcome.

 

Thanks in advance for your help

Charlene

[fishywood]

While Royal Princess will be doing British Isles Summer 2018, Caribbean Princess has done that itinerary the past few years including this year. And as Royal Princess is being redeployed to California for Spring 2019 it is far more likely she will be in Alaska rather than Northern Europe that summer. So it may be premature to research a specific ship until the Summer 2019 sailings are open for booking. Which could be as early as late November or December--or not until next spring.

[Pam in CA]

The 2019 itineraries will probably be released in March or April. They're not all released at once.

 

As said, the Royal is being redeployed to LA and then sail Alaskan cruises in 2019.

 

My best guess is that the Regal will be sailing the Northern European cruises. I'm also guessing that the new ship joining the fleet in 2019 will be sailing Mediterranean cruises. These are just educated guesses.

[nukesubsailor]

In 2015 we did the British Isles cruise aboard the Royal Princess. It was fantastic but there is so much to see and do that we were exhausted. We took the excursion to Normandy during our visit to Le Havre. We were determined to return so we could see what we didn't have time to on that cruise. That is what we did this year. We booked back to back British Isles cruises on the Caribbean Princess. It too was fantastic. And we got to see so much more and did not exhaust ourselves. The first cruise stopped in Kirkwall while the second one stopped in Liverpool. We also used a visit to Le Havre to take the excursion to Paris.

To get the most out of the trip with the least amount of time and money spent on air travel, I would recommend considering doing a back to back set of cruises if time and funds allow. You won't regret it.

[nini]

NukeSubSailor-

 

Great idea!!! Thx :D

[ggprincess2004]

The Sapphire is also being redeployed from the Austral-asia sailings and looks like it will be doing Europe, so they might put her on the British Isles sailings. We love her, she has a broader beam than the other ships (except her sister, the Diamond), so the balconies are deeper. I second the concept of booking b2b nearly identical itineraries. It keeps you sane, while letting you see more.

[peety3]

The Sapphire is also being redeployed from the Austral-asia sailings and looks like it will be doing Europe, so they might put her on the British Isles sailings. We love her, she has a broader beam than the other ships (except her sister, the Diamond), so the balconies are deeper. I second the concept of booking b2b nearly identical itineraries. It keeps you sane, while letting you see more.

I'm curious - where did you find that little nugget about the Diamond/Sapphire being broader? I thought they were a near carbon copy of the Grand class, except that the midship MDRs are split into halves.

[crazytomatoes]

Thanks for the information, we are just in the beginning stages of planning, being new to princess we are not as familiar with the process. I will keep an eye out as I wait for the 2019 cruises to appear!

 

 

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[easyboy]

I agree it may be early to know what ship will sail the British Isles in 2019.

We are sailing on the Caribbean Princess for the British Isles this Sept 2017. We booked it in July 2016.

[skynight]

In April 2019 the Emerald Princess is sailing from Vancouver to Ft. Lauderdale through the Panama Canal. She may then do a transatlantic. This could be the British Isle ship for 2019. There are also other ship options. There are lots design differences between Grand Class ships, Emerald, and Royal Class ships such as the Regal. You could see the summer 2019 schedule about 18 months in advance.

[Aus Traveller]

I'm curious - where did you find that little nugget about the Diamond/Sapphire being broader? I thought they were a near carbon copy of the Grand class, except that the midship MDRs are split into halves.

The beam on the Grand is 118 feet while the Diamond/Sapphire are a little wider at 123 feet.:)

[Colo Cruiser]

I'm curious - where did you find that little nugget about the Diamond/Sapphire being broader? I thought they were a near carbon copy of the Grand class, except that the midship MDRs are split into halves.

 

 

Diamond/Sapphire built in Japan. Sapphire beam 121ft. Diamond beam 123ft

Both ships swapped names during build due to a fire (10/03/2002) that destroyed the superstructure down to the hull on the Diamond.

So the Diamond is actually the Sapphire.

Other Grand Class built in Italy

Edited August 25, 2017 by Colo Cruiser