Where's BDJAM?

[bdjam]

Sorry for the double post. I see CC is still up to its old tricks.

[cruzinchris]

Brian,

What type of stateroom do you have and how does it compare to the Island/Coral, spacewise? We would most likely book a balcony.

 

I'll look forward to a review. Bon Voyage!

Chris

[TorontoTL]

Brian your posts have inspired me to book on the Dawn. I just emailed the TA to hold a cabin on the Dawn for the 29th of Jan. That'll give my partner and I a chance to consider it. It sure sounds like we would enjoy the Dawn, at least as much as we did the Sun two years ago.

[Coral]

We've had Pianoman and Tribute and I enjoyed them both immensely on Island Princess...here they are fair. (Coral - Joe Sack would be appalled :-) )That's been the only disappointment.

 

I did check out the Card Room and Conference Room. Some inside cabins forward on Riviera Deck have been removed for these two rooms. The Card Room fits - albeit tightly - about eight tables and the conference room is quite impressive.

 

Oh man - if I had known that Joe Sack wasn't going to be on your cruise, I could have loaned you my CD so you would have decent entertainment while on the Dawn :).

 

That is too bad about the entertainment - Joe Sack did Piano Man perfectly! I have to admit, the entertainment wasn't that great on the Golden - after having awesome entertainment on the Sun this summer, it just didn't compare.

 

Does the Dawn Princess still have the "Ward Room"? I doin't remember what deck it was on but it is where the most traveled parties were on the Dawn. I hope they didn't remove that for the card room - I loved the Ward Room.

 

Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

[bdjam]

Brian,

What type of stateroom do you have and how does it compare to the Island/Coral, spacewise? We would most likely book a balcony.

 

I'll look forward to a review. Bon Voyage!

Chris

Chris - I splurged on this trip and got myself a mini-suite. These are much more elaborate than the minis on the Coral or Grand Class of ships - more like little suites than big staterooms. The standard staterooms on the Sun Class are on the small side, but I've never found them to be so small they are not livable...quite efficient in my opinion, but I seem to be one of the few who feel that way.

[bdjam]

Brian your posts have inspired me to book on the Dawn. I just emailed the TA to hold a cabin on the Dawn for the 29th of Jan. That'll give my partner and I a chance to consider it. It sure sounds like we would enjoy the Dawn, at least as much as we did the Sun two years ago.

Sorry for the multiple posts here - I'm limited in my capabilties. If you've been on Sun Princess, you'll be right at home on Dawn Princess. Twins. When I walked on board, I felt like I was on Sun Princess. That and the fact that the service and quality is quite high - in my opinion anyway - I think you've made a great choice. We should hook up when you come through SF!

[bdjam]

Oh man - if I had known that Joe Sack wasn't going to be on your cruise, I could have loaned you my CD so you would have decent entertainment while on the Dawn :).

 

That is too bad about the entertainment - Joe Sack did Piano Man perfectly! I have to admit, the entertainment wasn't that great on the Golden - after having awesome entertainment on the Sun this summer, it just didn't compare.

 

Does the Dawn Princess still have the "Ward Room"? I doin't remember what deck it was on but it is where the most traveled parties were on the Dawn. I hope they didn't remove that for the card room - I loved the Ward Room.

 

Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

I just laughed out loud in the Internet Cafe while a computer class is going on...people are giving me the evil eye.The most-traveled passenger event this trip is a luncheon in the Venetian Dining Room. I blew it - I was invited as one of the 20 most traveled passengers on board (which means there aren't many traveled passengers on board...in fact there are a lot of first timers) and because I got my invites mixed up...missed the lunch. So it doesn't seem like they are using the Ward Room for the gathering now. Which is a shame - I get to see the dining room every night, I would have liked to have gone to the Ward Room...I guess the way it worked out, it's just as well. They definitely have not removed that for the Card Room - it's right in the middle of the cabin area and it looks like inside cabins have been removed. One of the cruise staff was mentioning an event she had in the Ward Room, so I think it's still here.

[Coral]

I just laughed out loud in the Internet Cafe while a computer class is going on.

 

They definitely have not removed that for the Card Room - it's right in the middle of the cabin area and it looks like inside cabins have been removed. One of the cruise staff was mentioning an event she had in the Ward Room, so I think it's still here.

 

:)

 

Thanks - the Ward Room is close to some inside cabins so I wasn't quite suite. For the life of me, I don't even remember what deck the Ward Room is on.

 

Too bad about the Most Traveled Party!

 

Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

[Ethel5]

The standard staterooms on the Sun Class are on the small side, but I've never found them to be so small they are not livable...quite efficient in my opinion, but I seem to be one of the few who feel that way./QUOTE]

 

Brian, I too have no trouble with the cabins on the Dun Class. I am proud to say that I have been on all 4, including the Ocean before she moved to P&O. Thanks again for keeping us posted. BTW, just so we won't go missing you again for the lack of asking, when and where is your next cruise?

[coiran]

When we were on the Sun in October they had the most traveled party (cocktail party) in the library which was very crowded with 40 people!

Ron

[Coral]

When we were on the Sun in October they had the most traveled party (cocktail party) in the library which was very crowded with 40 people!

Ron

 

On the Sun Princess - ours was also in the library. It was way too crowded!

 

Apparently the difference (or at least one of them) is that the Dawn Princess has a Ward room and the Sun Princess does not. This apparently has to do with the Sun Princess is supposed to be "Italian" and the Dawn Princess is supposed to be English and English Officers always had Ward Rooms on their ships. Or at least that is what the CD told us. He was unsure if the Sea Princess had a Ward Room or not.

[coiran]

When we were on the Regal 1n 2003 for the Baltic they had a cocktail party in a large conference room - it was very nice.

Ron

[bdjam]

Brian, I too have no trouble with the cabins on the Dun Class. I am proud to say that I have been on all 4, including the Ocean before she moved to P&O. Thanks again for keeping us posted. BTW, just so we won't go missing you again for the lack of asking, when and where is your next cruise?

Ethel - you don't mind if I call you Ethel, do you? I will admit that the last time I had a standard stateroom on Sun Princess - right after I had a mini-suite on Star Princess...or was it Pacific Princess?...I was shocked at how small the room seemed. But once I settled in it was fine. One thing about the minis - while they are marvelous rooms, the storage space is limited. I filled the closet and all of the drawers with 10 days of clothes and I swear I didn't overpack...well at least for me I didn't overpack. Others think three suitcases, two garment bags and a large carry on a bit much for 10 days, but how else am I going to transport all my hair-care products???Next up is Regal Princess in May 2006 - Panama Canal, Ft. Lauderdale to San Francisco.

[bdjam]

On the Sun Princess - ours was also in the library. It was way too crowded!

 

Apparently the difference (or at least one of them) is that the Dawn Princess has a Ward room and the Sun Princess does not. This apparently has to do with the Sun Princess is supposed to be "Italian" and the Dawn Princess is supposed to be English and English Officers always had Ward Rooms on their ships. Or at least that is what the CD told us. He was unsure if the Sea Princess had a Ward Room or not.

Right - Dawn Princess used to be a British ship, but the Captain on board now is Italian - don't know about the Bridge Officers. When I was at the most traveled luncheon on my last Regal Princess cruise, I sat with the Italian engineers and they all commented at how much better they were at taking care of ships and pointed to Dawn's engine issues as proof.And just to note - the engine issues are gone. We hauled up the coast of Baja California yesterday at 20.5 knots...the school of about 50 dolphins we saw off the port side of the ship tried swimming toward us so they could play in the wake, but could never get close.By the way, the Italian Captain played the sax in the crew talent show. He played it badly. It was a strange situation - here is a man of respect and responsiblity and I didn't know if I was supposed to laugh with him or take him seriously!

[spongerob]

It was a strange situation - here is a man of respect and responsiblity and I didn't know if I was supposed to laugh with him or take him seriously!

 

Reminds me of a former president. :D

[Ethel5]

Ethel - you don't mind if I call you Ethel, do you? Next up is Regal Princess in May 2006 - Panama Canal, Ft. Lauderdale to San Francisco.

 

Such good manners, but I'm not that old that you have to ask :D

 

It would be fine to call me "Donna" my given name. The Ethel thing is a long story and I will tell it to you over a drink when we finally catch up with each other :)

 

We are doing the Trans-canal April 2007 FLL to LAX, but I also have the Island RT from LAX to Hawaii booked in the same month-I can't make up my mind just yet.

[FLCruiseGuy]

I am a new poster here, but love cruising, particularly Princess. I am on the Jan 19th sailing of the Dawn... what do I have to look forward to? Any advice on do's and don'ts on these ports? Thanks, I hope you had a great voyage... :D

[bdjam]

I am a new poster here, but love cruising, particularly Princess. I am on the Jan 19th sailing of the Dawn... what do I have to look forward to? Any advice on do's and don'ts on these ports? Thanks, I hope you had a great voyage... :D

Unfortunately I'm not a great person to ask about ports as I tend to cruise more for the on board experience and a particular ship rather than ports. The Mexican ports are frequented by all Mexican Riviera cruises, so check over on the Ports board to see what information is there. As for Catalina and San Diego, I walked around both and found plenty to keep me busy. There are a number of good tours offered by Princess in San Diego and there's also a free shuttle - courtesy of Hilo Hatties believe it or not and direct to their San Diego store - which will take you down town. Definitely do not drink the water. Oh, and never be late for the ship...we left two passengers on the pier yesterday in San Diego.

 

 

As for what you have to look forward to on the ship, I'd say the whole experience is something to look forward to...but if you have particular questions, let me know.

 

And thanks for the wishes - I did have a great voyage. Unfortunately, today is the last day and thoughts of packing and disembarkation have crept in...I HATE disembarkation!

[bdjam]

Such good manners, but I'm not that old that you have to ask :D

 

It would be fine to call me "Donna" my given name. The Ethel thing is a long story and I will tell it to you over a drink when we finally catch up with each other :)

 

We are doing the Trans-canal April 2007 FLL to LAX, but I also have the Island RT from LAX to Hawaii booked in the same month-I can't make up my mind just yet.

I'm a big Lucy fan, so Ethel has a place in my heart...I look forward to hearing the long story.

 

If you've done the Panama Canal before, I'd definitely do the Hawaii trip...it was really a great one. But since you'll end up in Los Angeles in April, why don't you just switch ships when you get there and do both...! :D

[TorontoTL]

Brian, I hope you're keeping the Dawn in fine condition for us when we board her on January 29th. We booked, I kept thinking about how the deal was too good to pass up. Plus it will be our first cruise as Platinum Captain's Circle members so I'll be able to post while on board too....;) . What deck did they move the Card Room to because it isn't shown on the deck plans anywhere that I can find. I can see how they replaced the card room with the internet room and enlarged the spa by taking over the old business centre, but I don't see the new card room. Keep posting, I love to hear about your cruise.

 

Benny

[Druke I]

Dawn Princess due into San Francisco this AM, according to the SF Chronicle.

 

Bet Brian will post a full review within a day or two.

[bdjam]

Brian, I hope you're keeping the Dawn in fine condition for us when we board her on January 29th. We booked, I kept thinking about how the deal was too good to pass up. Plus it will be our first cruise as Platinum Captain's Circle members so I'll be able to post while on board too....;) . What deck did they move the Card Room to because it isn't shown on the deck plans anywhere that I can find. I can see how they replaced the card room with the internet room and enlarged the spa by taking over the old business centre, but I don't see the new card room. Keep posting, I love to hear about your cruise.

 

Benny

Benny – Dawn Princess is in fine condition…she’s even decked out for the holiday. I’m sure you will find her just as pristine as I did…

The Card Room is forward on Riviera Deck…I think the recently moved it there, probably when they put the Internet Café in, so that may explain why it’s not on the deck plan. It has taken the place of some inside cabins there. If you enter from the pool area and go forward, the Card Room is on the port side about four inside cabins down.

Dawn Princess due into San Francisco this AM, according to the SF Chronicle.

The Chronicle is right – and I’m home. And missing her already!

[spongerob]

Welcome home, pard. :)

[CruisinChris]

BD - the card room has actually taken over a space previously occupied by the Ward Room (officers lounge). I attend two most frequently traveled parties there in 12/03 prior to creation of the new internet center. I was a very pretty wood paneled room (at the time). The Sun Princess wasn't built with a Ward Room, so they didn't have a place to create a card room on her. Not sure how this space was or is configured then or now on sisters Sea and Oceana (Ocean).

 

Glad you had a good trip. Love the Sun class ships.

[bdjam]

Welcome home, pard. :)

Thank you, my friend. We still on for Regal Princess? I can apply one of the on-board bookings I bought to it!!