First Time Cruiser - Questions for Princess Sun

[newcruiserny]

Hi first time poster long time reader first time cruiser.  So I have a casino cruise certificate for free interior cabin and want to try Princess Sun because its the newest - is this a mistake or is this the ship I want to be on?  My goal is to relax, eat and gamble at sea.

I had some questions:

 

• I want to eat unlimited specialty dining.  I'm not picky about the wifi and I don't drink a lot of alcohol and I don't care about excursions.  I did research and would still purchase Princess Premier but I am worried it won't be worth it if I only can eat dinner at these restaurants.  Can anybody shed light on lunch or if there is a standalone dining package?
• Is the casino smoke free?  I don't smoke cigarettes but I vape electronic.  I do it discretely and don't blow huge clouds of smoke.  I am very considerate
• What interior room do I want to be in?  Can you recommend a deck and or a specific room number.  Do I want to be mid ship? If its interior it shouldn't make a difference right?  I guess my only request is that its not always loud and foot traffic
• Do I want to do a Bid Upgrade?  I have never cruised before.  Would this bring me up to a balcony?  
• Would you recommend March - May to the Caribbean?  Is this a bad time to go?

 

Thank you and forgive me for my silly questions.  Any help would be great. 

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

First of all, Princess lists the ship name first. It’s called the Sun Princess. 
 

The casino is NOT smoke free. We were on the 5th sailing ever and it already smelled horribly. I couldn’t be in there at all. Even walking through was a terrible experience. 
 

Never been in an inside cabin.  Bid upgrades are not frequently available. You can bid on whatever class of cabins are being offered. But because you are in an inside cabin, your bids will already be higher to upgrade than say someone already in a balcony. 
 

7 day Caribbean cruises in March will attract a lot of college kids. Late April will have more kids as it’s April Vacation in the Northeast. 
 

Welcome to being a “live” CC member.   Enjoy your first cruise. 

[IndyKid]

I'll try to answer this as best I can, we've only done 1 Princess cruise, but I've done a lot of research for our next one coming up.

 

There's no dining package that I'm aware of. You'll pay $45 per specialty dinner if you pay as you go. Add in gratuities and other items you get with the Premier package and it's probably worth going with Premier. 

 

Casinos are not smoke free, only Celebrity offers those. 

 

I've never been in an interior room, but I would choose a room that's mid-ship, halfway between the forward and aft elevators to minimize foot traffic, noise and movement from waves if the seas are rough.

 

If you bid for an upgrade it would be an ocean view room.

 

If you go in the spring, I would go later in April or May to avoid spring breakers.

[memoak]

 Casino. Smoking and vaping is only allowed while playing slots on the smoking side of the casino. No smoking or gaping at table games

 

[newcruiserny]

Can I eat specialty restaurants for lunch?   

[rebeccac]

I've not been on the Sun Princess yet (next month!!), but I can't recall seeing any of the specialty restaurants open for lunch (except maybe the sushi, which is very different on the other Princess ships).

[antsp]

13 minutes ago, IndyKid said:

I'll try to answer this as best I can, we've only done 1 Princess cruise, but I've done a lot of research for our next one coming up.

 

There's no dining package that I'm aware of. You'll pay $45 per specialty dinner if you pay as you go. Add in gratuities and other items you get with the Premier package and it's probably worth going with Premier. 

 

Casinos are not smoke free, only Celebrity offers those. 

 

I've never been in an interior room, but I would choose a room that's mid-ship, halfway between the forward and aft elevators to minimize foot traffic, noise and movement from waves if the seas are rough.

 

If you bid for an upgrade it would be an ocean view room.

 

If you go in the spring, I would go later in April or May to avoid spring breakers.

The Premier package includes speciality restaurants unlimited included

[IndyKid]

4 minutes ago, antsp said:

The Premier package includes speciality restaurants unlimited included

That was my point. If you're going to eat every night in a specialty restaurant then you might as well spring for the Premier. Add in gratuities and the other features included with this package and you're close to the $90US/day anyway.

Edited Saturday at 03:39 PM by IndyKid

[Wishing on a star]

Welcome!!!

You can dine at the 'Casual' restaurants when they are open for lunch on Sea Days.

( Alfredo's and O'Malleys.  I understand that O'Malleys, especially is only open for lunch on Sea Days.)

Specialty restaurants are at Dinner only.

With Premier, you can dine at any of the several Specialty Restaurants onboard.

Of course, you do not HAVE to dine at these restaurants only.

If you do not want to try more than a couple of Speciality Dining you could do PLUS.

But, if top shelf drinks, and better wine, is in order, Premier might be the way to go.

 

There seems to be no shortage of food options onboard!

 

I will go ahead and post about the interior cabin...  But, I haven't seen or researched this.  

On other Princess ships, the interior cabins that are 'sideways', instead of perpendicular off the hallway, have a different lay-out, and can seem feel a bit more spacious.

The regular interior cabins will have more of an entry with the bath and storage there at the doorway,  where the 'sideways' interior cabins have the door open directly into the main area.

There was a thread about this, months ago, when the Sun first started sailing, with some photos.

 

If you have never cruised, and might be concerned about motion, then go for a cabin that is mid-ship and mid to lower deck.  The way a ship sways, the motion is greater the higher up.

 

Once you have paid off the cruise, then you will be able to Bid for Upgrade when this opens up.   You can easily bid for an Ocean View (which seem nice, layed out like a Deluxe Balcony), or even a Balcony.

 

When to cruise the Caribbean?  If you are wanting Spring or early Summer, then you might want to wait until one week after Easter.   Spring Break, Easter Break, etc...  these will be sold-out cruises with a lot of kids and younger folks.  Which doesn't seem to be what you are looking for?

 

Hope this helps!

Edited Saturday at 03:44 PM by Wishing on a star

[memoak]

2 minutes ago, antsp said:

The Premier package includes speciality restaurants unlimited included

Yes but it costs $90 a day pp. if the OP does not drink they might be better off paying the $45 per dinner

On most ships specialty meals are only for dinner. Casual dining in available for lunches on most ships and they are included in the package. 
My take is that most menus in the MDR are pretty decent. We only use specialty dinners may 2 times a week on a cruise

 

 

[IndyKid]

11 minutes ago, newcruiserny said:

Can I eat specialty restaurants for lunch?   

Not that I'm aware of. I believe some of the casual dining places may be open for lunch.

[1025cruise]

14 minutes ago, newcruiserny said:

Can I eat specialty restaurants for lunch?   

I can't speak specifically for the Sun, but generally, the specialty restaurants aren't open for lunch. If they were to open, it would only be on a sea day, but don't count on it. On port days, lunch options are limited, mainly due to most people not being on the ship. On the Enchanted, Gigi's was open daily for lunch. Gigi's is considered a casual restaurant, not a specialty.

[newcruiserny]

Ya it sounds like premier is the way to go.   At least I don’t need to think.  So March- May it sounds like may is the least crowded.   But isn’t princess an older crowd?   Wouldn’t spring breakers be on carnival?   

[Wishing on a star]

To the original poster....

As you can see, one really has to do the math to see how a package would work out for you.

Estimate the number of Specialty Dining meals, Drinks, Specialty coffees, etc...  and see how that adds up.   Might be worth a few minutes with a pen and paper and calculator.

[Wishing on a star]

What you are saying is true, to a point,  but today, even Princess has a ton of families and kids onboard during breaks.  Not the college and high school Spring Breakers...  but a real difference onboard.

[Wishing on a star]

Here is a video of a regular Inside Cabin :

 

 

[Wishing on a star]

There are not many Sideways Inside Cabins on lower decks.

But, here is a video :

 

 

[newcruiserny]

28 minutes ago, antsp said:

The Premier package includes speciality restaurants unlimited included

I understand unlimited but if i can only eat dinner that would be 7 for a 7 day cruise 

[newcruiserny]

Would you guys recommend Sun Princess or is another ship a better choice. I guess I don’t want crowded and more laid back

[memoak]

1 minute ago, newcruiserny said:

Would you guys recommend Sun Princess or is another ship a better choice. I guess I don’t want crowded and more laid back

Everyone has their own preferences. Sizes of ships range quite a bit. Some like new flash others like the older smaller ships. 
Casino older ships often have older type slots and if you play table games be aware that no vaping is allowed there

[Wishing on a star]

Yes, it is preference...  And, as a first time cruiser you might not know what preferences to look for.

ALL ships can be more crowded when they are fully booked.  So, no huge difference there.

In general, the number of cabin ration to the public areas is not the biggest factor.

On a warm weather cruise, the sun decks will be crowded on sea days.

Dining can be busy during the most popular early-mid evening dining times.

 

The thing is to understand this, and to plan your days accordingly, make dining reservations, etc.

 

You have mentioned the Casino, Enjoying the food/dining, and relaxing...

Be more specific about how your days, and evenings, might look, and there might be some tips.

I believe that there was a thread here about the best Princess Casino.

As far as an adult Sun Deck, the newer Royal Class ships have taken away from the Adult Retreat area, and enclosed this area with, yes, more cabins.  For me, this is one factor in choosing.

The Sun Princess has the huge Sea View Terrace, which, at least for now, is Adult Only.

 

If there is another ship or itinerary that you might consider, go on Youtube and search for Ship Tour for that particular ship.

 

None of the newer ships have a real wrap-around Promenade. 

 

If a more open, lighter, contemporary feel works for you,  the SUN Princess would def. fit the bill.

The cabins and the baths, with an actual shower with a glass shower door, are much improved on the SUN.

[Wishing on a star]

Also, for the Specialty Dining, make sure you are seeing the new deck plans for AFTER October 14.   Most of these are being re-located and changed up.

[newcruiserny]

3 minutes ago, Wishing on a star said:

Also, for the Specialty Dining, make sure you are seeing the new deck plans for AFTER October 14.   Most of these are being re-located and changed up.

Thank you so much for your tips and information.   

[reedprincess]

2 hours ago, newcruiserny said:

Can I eat specialty restaurants for lunch?   

Nope 

Lunch is in the main dining room (sea days), buffet, international Cafe, pool deck outlets (tacos, burgers, pizza, etc), International Cafe, or Ocean Now delivery or room service.

Casual dining venues (unlimited in Premier Cruise Package) such as O'Malley's or Alfredo's..

 

Rumors have Kai Sushi open for lunch also - you'd have to check aboard..

 

[reedprincess]

1 hour ago, newcruiserny said:

I understand unlimited but if i can only eat dinner that would be 7 for a 7 day cruise 

7 different restaurants though.

There's 7 different specialty restaurants on Sun, so you could eat an entirely different one every night.

Crown Grill - steakhouse 

The Catch - seafood mainly 

Umai Teppenyaki 

Umai Hot Pot 

Sabatini's - Italian 

Kai Sushi 

Butcher's Block - more steak, but entirely different from CG.

 

You wouldn't have to eat the same thing twice at all...

 

Specialty dining costs $45+18% if purchased a la carte.

WiFi is $24.99. Per night 

Daily Gratuity is $17 for an inside..

Add those together, and you've more than covered cost of Premier without ever buying a drink (even if you're just talking bottled water or cappuccino or a soda) or taking a picture or had any premium desserts or any casual dining meals or anything else included..

 

Edited Saturday at 05:34 PM by reedprincess