Here my wife and I were in Singapore at the Marina Bay Cruise Center ready to embark on Sapphire Princess. The date was 7/2/2016 We are not brand new to cruising having cruised with Star Cruises (Virgo and Libra) around Asia on a number of occasions and Royal Caribbean (RC) (Explorer of the Seas) from Fremantle to Sydney via the South Island of New Zealand. We obviously still have a lot to learn. This was to be our first cruise with the Princess Group and we were keen to enter the debate as to whether RC or Princess was best.
The Marina Bay Cruise Center was a real eye opener. It is by far the best cruise passenger terminal we have encountered thus far and is up there with many of the airport terminals we have been through over the years. And, talk about efficient – embarkation was an easy clockwork type experience where one element flowed almost seamlessly into the next. Before you knew it, we were on board in your very own state room.
One of the first things we had learnt when we started cruising was that you get out of cruising as much as you put in. It’s what you make of it. On this trip we quickly learnt just what a difference a cabin steward makes. We have had good stewards in the past and one great steward who sticks in our mind. Unfortunately, this time we found one who was memorable for all the wrong reasons.
The Balcony Cabin was well appointed and look good. We were initially impressed.
The balcony itself had not been prepared prior to boarding and it was some days before it was cleaned and the furniture spread out for use.
On closer inspection we found old milk in our refrigerator. We had to chase after our water package before it was delivered to our cabin. The daily resupply of consumables was like pulling teeth. Locating our Steward was also a challenge and we ultimately left a written message for him as to our concerns.
Despite all this, we did enjoy the cruise and overall had a great time. We will be back.