Sapphire Princess Review

Another Great Princess Cruise

Review for Hawaii Cruise on Sapphire Princess
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Woobstr112G
10+ Cruises • Age 60s

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Sail Date: Mar 2013

This was our 13th total cruise and sixth in a row on Princess. We sailed with DW's sister and her husband. We choose this cruise mainly for the number of sea days and the fact we live less than 100 miles from the port of San Pedro so no flying was involved. We did the same cruise on the Golden in 2011. Liked it so much, we booked this one as soon as bookings opened. Since we lived so close, we didn't do a pre-cruise stay, just a short ride to my sister's house who was nice enough to give us a ride to the port. As far as the actual embarkation, it was very smooth for us as we got to the ship quite late. We basically walked right on the ship. We were late due to a last minute medical issue on embarkation day. The issue subsequently cleared up so we decided to sail.

I arranged a cruise critic meet and greet in Skywalkers on the first day at sea. The meet and greet was well attended. It was nice to put faces to people you had been electronically corresponding with. We had a Vista suite (D738). The suite is on the aft portion of the ship on Dolphin deck. This was our first aft view cruise and now that it's over, I am hooked. The balcony was huge and the beam didn't bother us at all. The suite was well appointed and it was nice having a separate Jacuzzi tub and shower. In my opinion, the closet space was somewhat tiny but there was definitely enough storage space with all the drawers. The best thing by far concerning our Vista suite, was the cabin steward. Fernando from the Philippines was arguably the best cabin steward we've had on any of our cruises. He always had a smile on his face and kept our room spotless. The one thing that really impressed me was the level of enthusiasm he displayed despite the fact he had been doing this for twenty years.

The Sapphire Princess is a beautiful ship. We had sailed the Diamond on a previous cruise so we were somewhat familiar with the layout. All areas were spotless. All crewmembers that I came in contact with always had a smile on their face and went to great lengths to make sure all passengers enjoyed their cruise. As far as some of the areas of the ship we enjoyed, I'd have to say Alfredo's was my favorite. The pizzas were great and the venue to enjoy them was nice. I also enjoyed Muts, and the Neptune pool area as well as the Terrace pool area. I did note however the jets on both Jacuzzi's above the Terrace pool weren't working for the entire cruise. I made good use of the gym, going early in the morning on most days. I did this to avoid the crowds. When in the gym, I noticed that all of the cardio equipment was in good working order. I tried the thermal suite in the Lotus Spa. I found the stone beds nice. I did note that the temps in both the thermal suite sauna as well as the sauna in the men's room were a little cool. The steam room in the men's room was not working when I visited. DW made use of the salon services in the Lotus Spa. She enjoyed the services and did not encounter any hard sell issues.

Cabin Review

Cabin VS

Somewhat small closet space. Absolutely outstanding balcony.

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