Sapphire Princess Concerns

[ccruzer123]

We are booked on a Baltic cruise on the Sapphire Princess in 2018 but have become very concerned regarding the ships condition. The reviews on the Sapphire Princess for November 2017 are not very good and in fact pretty bad. I've checked online and it seems that the Sapphire will be in dry dock in March 2018 for 12 days. I can't find anything about what they plan on doing on the inside of the ship which is in desperate need of help (plumbing, theater, beds, furniture, etc.).

I'm going to assume they will change out the staff with the change out of Asia to Europe which should take care of the language problems.

Does anyone have any information they can share on what will take place in dry dock?

We are seriously thinking of switching to another line for the cruise because of the recent reviews.

[satxdiver]

The beds will be replaced with the new beds for sure. As to what else will be replaced/fixed, we don't know. To be sure though a lot of work on the interior will be done to include things like new carpet, furniture replacement/repair, etc. I expect that the ship will be wired for ***** at that time.

[easyboy]

We will be on the Sapphire next month. We are not concerned about its condition as other’s expectations may differ from ours. We just take negative reviews with a grain of salt.

Before boarding the Crown and the Caribbean Princess this year, we also read some negative reviews. We enjoyed our sailing on both ships after.

Ships have their dry dock schedules. The Mar 14-15, 2018 dry dock schedule for Sapphire indicates routine maintenance. This may involve refurbishments.

Staff are changed based on individual crew’s contract, not on itinerary change. Not sure what the language problem was on the Sapphire.

 

 

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[DaveinWhales]

We will be on the Sapphire next month. We are not concerned about its condition as other’s expectations may differ from ours. We just take negative reviews with a grain of salt.

 

 

Not sure what the language problem was on the Sapphire.

 

 

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Be assured it was more than just the odd person who was unhappy. Such was the level of discontent the Captain apologised for the shortcomings experienced on that trip. The state of the boat would have been overlooked if the management had been efficient and the quality of the food better than mediocre. Compound all that with the feeling that Princess are only interested in relieving you of all your cash and it makes for dissatisfied customers.

 

I wasn't aware of any language problems but maybe it wasn't referring to English speakers. There was party of 600 from several South and Central American countries and perhaps there was a shortage for their native tongue?

[maiseric]

We are booked on a Baltic cruise on the Sapphire Princess in 2018 but have become very concerned regarding the ships condition. The reviews on the Sapphire Princess for November 2017 are not very good and in fact pretty bad. I've checked online and it seems that the Sapphire will be in dry dock in March 2018 for 12 days. I can't find anything about what they plan on doing on the inside of the ship which is in desperate need of help (plumbing, theater, beds, furniture, etc.).

 

I'm going to assume they will change out the staff with the change out of Asia to Europe which should take care of the language problems.

 

Does anyone have any information they can share on what will take place in dry dock?

 

We are seriously thinking of switching to another line for the cruise because of the recent reviews.

 

 

 

According to the e mail Princess sent me the gym, spa ,shops and kids clubs will be refurbished plus new carpets . The e mail implied other things might be done!

 

 

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[Astro Flyer]

We are booked on a Baltic cruise on the Sapphire Princess in 2018 but have become very concerned regarding the ships condition. The reviews on the Sapphire Princess for November 2017 are not very good and in fact pretty bad. I've checked online and it seems that the Sapphire will be in dry dock in March 2018 for 12 days. I can't find anything about what they plan on doing on the inside of the ship which is in desperate need of help (plumbing, theater, beds, furniture, etc.).

I'm going to assume they will change out the staff with the change out of Asia to Europe which should take care of the language problems.

Does anyone have any information they can share on what will take place in dry dock?

We are seriously thinking of switching to another line for the cruise because of the recent reviews.

Obviously that’s a personal decision however if I were to base my cruises on what I read on CC we would have missed many great cruises. ;)

 

Like others I take such negatively with a grain of salt because too many are from upset passengers with unreasonable expectations or who are very difficult to please. Some lack objectivity because they have an axe to grind with any cruise line & will do their best to get some revenge. Things go wrong & each of us decides whether it ruins our cruise or not.

 

I’ve read bad reviews & then when cruising the same ship had a great cruise; I’ve done the same things on the same cruise that were poorly reviewed & had a great cruise. And having been in Asia since 2014 there are going to be fewer Sapphire reviews.

 

We’re booked on the Sapphire in Europe this summer & expect the ship to be as great as on our most recent Sapphire cruise 4 years ago before being deployed to Asia. I was hoping they’d add some of the dining options added to the Caribbean earlier this year but 3 months from drydock Princess isn’t sharing anything beyond the new bedding being added. That leads me to guess that the drydock could primarily be ship maintenance & cosmetic changes such as replacing carpets & upholstery. However until Princess releases details then all we can do is speculate about what will be done.

 

Not attempting to sway your decision about canceling your cruise & only sharing why we’re eagerly looking forward to sailing the Sapphire again in Summer 2018. :)

[Wacruzr]

You might want to follow a live thread for the Sapphire Princess cruise that starts on 12-30. Should provide an indication of the current condition of the ship. I would assume that any changes made for the Asian market will be replaced for European cruises.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2577095

 

Loren

[princess09]

There is a "Live From Sapphire" beginning from Malaysia. Follow along.

We've sailed on her and enjoyed the ship.

[accent95]

To the OP

Yes, you should change your cruise if you are so negative about the experience already.

We are going on the Baltic cruise this year and are very positive about the whole trip.

We have found that worrying about all the things that you cannot control is a recipe for disaster. To get all worked up about a few people's subjective views of a whole ship is dangerous

I read all reviews on CC and have never taken a cruise without researching thoroughly on CC

I have not read anything so far, that will cause me to cancel our cruise on the Sapphire

Now, I may come back so disillusioned about the ship, but that is life. It will still be an adventure

May you only sail on the very best ships with the best crews.

[Coral]

The Sapphire is one of my all time favorite Princess ships. She never feels crowded and has a wide promenade deck. By chance, she is also the ship that I have sailed the most on.

 

I have a friend on the ship now. He said a new Captain came on the ship on the 19th of December.

 

I have no doubt that she will come out of dry dock looking pretty nice. The only negative thing my friend has mentioned was theatre seats needs to be redone. Well, that and the Captain is trying to dodge a typhoon.

 

I would guess half the staff will have been replaced by the time you are on the ship this summer just through the process of normal contracts.

 

-----

 

I cancelled a ship once due to reviews. I later sailed on it and had a great time (reviews were still bad).

Edited December 27, 2017 by Coral

[Pierlesscruisers]

I would guess half the staff will have been replaced by the time you are on the ship this summer just through the process of normal contracts.

 

I cancelled a ship once due to reviews. I later sailed on it and had a great time (reviews were still bad).

 

Yep, things change on every ship and what is important to some people don't count for diddly to others. Take many reviews with a grain of sale (and some with a whole shakerful!) and go with your gut feeling. My wife and I cruised on one ship a few years ago and, for whatever reason, she didn't like it at all. We took one for a coast-to-coast through the Panamal Canal on the same ship early on in 2017 and it's now her favorite ship. Go figure!

 

The only ship I found that I haven't liked yet is one I haven't sailed on. Or, put another way, I've liked every one I've sailed on, some more than others.

 

Tom

[Tranquility Base]

The Sapphire is one of my all time favorite Princess ships. She never feels crowded and has a wide promenade deck.

Does Sapphire have the full length padded loungers on the promenade like Diamond does ?

[Astro Flyer]

Does Sapphire have the full length padded loungers on the promenade like Diamond does ?

 

Both ships have the wider promenade deck and when I sailed the Sapphire in 2014 they had the padded teak loungers. Hopefully someone can share a more recent experience on the Sapphire since being deployed to Asia.

[wineglass]

We were on Sapphire Princess in November. Yes, she has the full length padded lounge chairs on deck 7. One of the things I liked about the ship. I was one who recently had some complaints about Sapphire, but I would not hesitate to sail on her again. The only ship I would never sail again was a Costa Ship

[Croptop]

I'll be boarding the Sapphire on the 30th. If you want any specific questions answered about her, just ask. I've also created a "live from" thread where I'll be answering any questions and posting lots of nonsense and drivel about my trip.

 

Hopefully with pictures.

[ccruzer123]

Wineglass,

Your response really helped, thanks. We have been on enough cruises (50+) to know a cruise is what you make of it. We have been on ships that are in great shape and others that you just pray the toilet flushes. But when I read so many negative comment on recent cruises, we began to think maybe we should look at another cruise line for that itinerary.

We will be looking forward to the reviews on the Sapphire Princess after her dry dock is completed.

[Fernando71]

Thank you for doing this! We’ve never been on the Sapphire so it will be great to see what we are letting ourselves in for!

Safe travels!

Rosie and Derek.

 

 

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