Question about booking The Sanctuary

[trinitygirl]

Hi all, 

I am a first time Princess cruiser (6 sleeps to go!) and have not been able to find an answer to my question.  Are you able to book The Sanctuary for a half day, for your whole trip?  I have read that you can either book for the whole trip at $30 a day on embarkation day, or you can book on the day for the whole or half of that day.  What if you want to book for the whole trip, but just half a day?

thanks in advance!

[rebeccac]

I believe that would simply be a matter of booking each half day separately.  No package deal like the full days and you may not get the same chair each day.  RUN to the Sanctuary upon boarding in order to have the best shot of making this happen.  

[capriccio]

In the past you could only book full days for the entire cruise upon embarkation but that changed at least a few years ago and now you can book for whichever days you prefer.  As rebeccac advises, go immediately to the Sanctuary upon boarding and then be prepared (if you aren't the first in line) to be patient since signing up is a labor intensive (but worthwhile!) effort because only one party at a time could be assisted.  The Sanctuary manager takes each party to look at available lounges for the time periods being requested.  He then hand colors the chosen lounges as being filled on his map, takes you back to the entry desk and hands the rest of the process (hand completed receipt) to another staff member.  

 

You can reserve for the entire cruise ($30 p/p per day), or entire specific days ($40 p/p per day), or morning or afternoon shifts on specific days ($20 p/p per shift).

[AF-1]

Does the Sanctuary normally book up entirely for Caribbean Cruises?    Sailed to Alaska last year; and no one used it;  was empty every day.

Edited January 23, 2019 by AF-1
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[Host CJSKIDS]

You can book for the entire cruise for 1/2 days but you will pay the $20 per day and not get a discount.

 

I have been on sailings where it's booked solid, especially on sea days and sailing where there is a seat or 2 left.  Sometimes it looks empty but isn't because people booked but are only in for a small amount of time. 

It's my favorite place on the ship!

[capriccio]

5 minutes ago, AF-1 said:

Does the Sanctuary normally book up entirely for Caribbean Cruises?    Sailed to Alaska last year; and no one used it;  was empty every day.

 On last month's Christmas cruise the Sanctuary on the Crown was fully booked on sea days and very full on port days.  Many of those who booked for the entire cruise (as we did) had visited the islands before so stayed on the ship or had shorter excursions.  We also didn't arrive in Bonaire until noon so that morning the Sanctuary was fully booked.

[AF-1]

59 minutes ago, capriccio said:

 On last month's Christmas cruise the Sanctuary on the Crown was fully booked on sea days and very full on port days.  Many of those who booked for the entire cruise (as we did) had visited the islands before so stayed on the ship or had shorter excursions.  We also didn't arrive in Bonaire until noon so that morning the Sanctuary was fully booked.

Thank you very much; one more question.  What time did you board ship in order to book the Sanctuary?

[capriccio]

13 minutes ago, AF-1 said:

Thank you very much; one more question.  What time did you board ship in order to book the Sanctuary?

We got to the terminal at 10:50 and were through security, checked-in and waiting in the Elite lounge when they announced boarding around 11:05 so we were on board by 11:10 and went directly to the Sanctuary and we were not first in line!  After lunch we went up to the Sanctuary until Muster and there was a steady stream of folks picking out lounges.  I do know that they sold out all the full cruise lounges but I don't know what time that happened.

[AF-1]

Thank you;  from what I have seen on Princess website;  my cruise next month is sold out; so that means quite a few people will be looking to book the Sanctuary.  Again thanks and have a great day

[jrobe]

I am sure it is variable but the last time I tried to get the sanctuary for the week, I got to the terminal very early, waited quite awhile in the terminal for boarding to begin and was one of the first 8-10 people on the ship.  I then literally ran directly to the sanctuary before going to my room and it was already completely filled.  I suppose there were people doing back to back cruises that took may of the seats.  I wasted most of my morning getting to the terminal early and then making the whole process a big rush.  I have never done that again.

[capriccio]

1 minute ago, AF-1 said:

Thank you;  from what I have seen on Princess website;  my cruise next month is sold out; so that means quite a few people will be looking to book the Sanctuary.  Again thanks and have a great day

You're welcome.  I hope you have a wonderful cruise and have no trouble booking the Sanctuary!

[Bubbs33]

Additional questions about sanctuary:

 

1. Are the snacks and beverages included in the cost or extra?

 

2. Do they operate the sanctuary on Alaskan cruises and is it worth it?

 

Thx

[Pickels]

6 hours ago, rebeccac said:

I believe that would simply be a matter of booking each half day separately.  No package deal like the full days and you may not get the same chair each day.  RUN to the Sanctuary upon boarding in order to have the best shot of making this happen.  

Here's a question....don't you have to first check-in at the Check-in Desk before you RUN to the Sanctuary?  You can't go directly to the Sanctuary before check-in? Or can you? thanks.

[capriccio]

3 hours ago, Bubbs33 said:

Additional questions about sanctuary:

 

1. Are the snacks and beverages included in the cost or extra?

 

2. Do they operate the sanctuary on Alaskan cruises and is it worth it?

 

Thx

 

1) Flavored waters and the afternoon tea (tea/coffee, scones, small sandwiches, cakes, etc.) are included.  You can also order from the spa menu (if you search this board you may find a copy) for a $3 delivery charge.

 

2) Yes they do.  Whether it is worth it to you on any cruise is a personal matter.  We take into consideration the potential weather and the ports schedule.  We've never done it on any of our 3 Alaska cruises because of the iffy weather but I know it was popular on Glacier Bay day the first week in July last year.  The temperatures were in the high 70s, the sun was out and the sky was blue.  I think I've read that on Glacier Bay day and Panama Canal day (and maybe others), there is a special charge.  I'm sure someone will verify if that is true.

 

 

[Akaicb]

22 minutes ago, Pickels said:

Here's a question....don't you have to first check-in at the Check-in Desk before you RUN to the Sanctuary?  You can't go directly to the Sanctuary before check-in? Or can you? thanks.

Check-in is in the terminal that is outside of the ship, it's not like a hotel where you walk into the hotel and go to a check-in desk.

 

So you will be checked in before you board, but if you want a chance to get seats in the Sanctuary you are better off going straight there after boarding.  do not drop off your things at your cabin, do not get a bite at buffet or international cafe just go straight there because there will be a line.

[Pickels]

21 hours ago, Akaicb said:

Check-in is in the terminal that is outside of the ship, it's not like a hotel where you walk into the hotel and go to a check-in desk.

 

So you will be checked in before you board, but if you want a chance to get seats in the Sanctuary you are better off going straight there after boarding.  do not drop off your things at your cabin, do not get a bite at buffet or international cafe just go straight there because there will be a line.

thank you Akaieb, we really appreciate the info; since 2003, we have sometimes run into "chair hogs" and that's the one thing that really bothered us on cruises.  We've  even selected loungers one deck up from the pool deck, to get some space.  We've met some very nice people who would watch our chairs when we went to lunch.  This year, I want to surprise my wife on our anniversary by reserving the Sanctuary for our cruise. this way we can relax and not worry that when we go to lunch our chairs will be taken over. Thanks again for the heads-up, happy cruising to you!

[coops14]

On 1/23/2019 at 2:58 PM, jrobe said:

I am sure it is variable but the last time I tried to get the sanctuary for the week, I got to the terminal very early, waited quite awhile in the terminal for boarding to begin and was one of the first 8-10 people on the ship.  I then literally ran directly to the sanctuary before going to my room and it was already completely filled.  I suppose there were people doing back to back cruises that took may of the seats.  I wasted most of my morning getting to the terminal early and then making the whole process a big rush.  I have never done that again.

Exactly the same thing happened to me. As soon as we had boarded I ran to the Sanctuary, there was nothing left at all. I was very disappointed as I would have liked to have experienced this.  

We were on the Crown, south Caribbean route.  I did look at the Sanctuary a few times during the cruise and there were so many empty sun beds each time I looked, more than half empty, I felt really  upset as I really wanted to experience The Sanctuary, even if just for one afternoon,  but many of  the  beds had been booked by people not using them. 

 

 

[Cyn874]

Huh. I'll be sailing on Princess for the first time this April. I don't know much about Sanctuary but have been curious. I figured sometime during the 15 day cruise I might wander up and buy a half day pass, just once. I planned on it being a pretty spur of the moment thing- I want to see it first and I have no idea when I'll want to actually go. Maybe on day 2 in the morning. Maybe on day 13 in the late afternoon. Who knows!

 

Guess I never will, from the looks of things.

[OzKiwiJJ]

You never know your luck! Try it and see.

[rebeccac]

I do know that if a lounger is booked it will have a towel set up on it (whether or not the people actually show up), and if it is not booked, there will not be any towel.  We used this visual aide when I needed to move to a different chair in order to get more shade.  The staff was always very helpful if I wanted to move.