Sapphire Princess

Has anyone sailed on the Sapphire princess?

The Sapphire is first entering service. She is currently sailing to Seattle from Japan where she was built.

[BrwnEyedGirl]

The Sapphire's 1st cruise is scheduled for June 13th. Keep checking the board because ppl are good at giving feedback and posting pics after a cruise.
Have a great cruise all!!

No,but I am sailing on it July 11,2004.

I'll be on inaugural cruise next Sunday. Let you know in a couple weeks how she is. My sixth time to Alaska and 15th cruise on Princess.

on the Sapphire Princess

Hi Dick (and everyone)
My boyfriend and I will be sailing on the Sapphire Princess to Alaska on 6/26 (1st time for me, 2nd for him). Glad to hear you're excited and will report on your trip. Pictures too, I hope...

I have some questions I hope you can answer -

Our room has an 'obstructed view' - we're not sure what that means, exactly - will we have any view at all do you think?

Do I need a gown on formal nights or is 'wedding wear' ok?

We are planning on 3 excursions - snorkeling, rock climbing (yikes!), and hiking. Since you've been to Alaska so many times do you have any feedback/advice?

And......how cold will it really be? I did a search and came up with 60-45. I'm still not sure what cloths to bring.....

ok, I guess thats enough questions for now

Thanks so much!

Paula

[Paul Stuart]

Paula,

I will also be on The Sapphire that week, but I am confused...the cruise leaves on June 27th not on the 26th as you stated. The Diamond leaves on the 26th.

My daughter (almost 16) will be coming with me. This will be her 5th cruise (OK, I do spoil her, that what dads are for) and she loves them! You will love it too!

Paul

Paul you are correct about Sapphire sailing out on the 27th. Myself and my husband along with three other couples will be experiencing the brand new Sapphire. Can't wait.
Cheers, Camala

whoops, you guys are correct. Guess I was jumping the gun abit....

Thanks

Paula

Paula: Obstructed means your behind a life boat and will get light but no view. Wedding wear is o.k.. Snorkeling in Alaska without a insulated wet suit would not be advised as the hypothermia will be quick and you will not be telling stories when you come back. Lows in 30's can be expected at nights and near glaciers. Highs in 60's but with wind chill will feel like 40's. Dress warm.

My wife and another couple are going on the Sapphire July 18th. Can't wait to see some reviews before we go. Please make them good ()

Thanks and Good Sailing Everyone
Antonio

Hi Dick
Thanks for the info. According to the Princess website, on the snokeling excursion (in Ketchikan) we will have insulated wetsuits. The general weather sounds colder than I expected - I forgot about the wind chill factor.

I'm disappointed about the obstructed view but I guess theres always next time!

Looking forward to your review. Have a great time!

Thanks

Paula

Paula
My sister in-law had an obstructed view on my last cruise and it was only partially blocked she stated that the end of a lifeboat was blocking about half the window
Hopefully you get lucky and get something like that

Jerry

[kimba595]

FYI, there are some Sapphire Princess reviews and pictures on cruisecritic.com.

Antonio, my husband & I are also going on the July 18th cruise. We'll see you then! ~Kim



Post Edited (06-10-04 18:51)

There are 92 picture of the Sapphire princess on this web site. Reviews are only first impressions from a four hour visit. From what I read the ship will be wonderful.

Horizon, 9/5/04, Sapphire Princess, 6/13/004
Zuiderdam-2003, Constellation -2003, Infinity-2002, Vision of the Seas-2002,
Mercury-2001, Norwegian Sky-2000, Horizon-2000, Ryndam-1999, Grand Princess-1999, Westerdam-1998, Grand Princess-1998, Oriania-1997
1985-1996-3-HAL, 1-RCCL, 2-NCL, 11-Princess, 1-Royal, 1-Cunard

Don't be too concerned about obstructed views, I had them before and you can see some. I will be on the Sapphire 8/29, with obstructed view, however I hope get an upgrade, maybe you will too!

Dear L. Moore: I was upgraded from a BE guarantee to a BA, big balcony. Of course I booked early, and it is my 15th princess cruise. Good luck to you. If the reviews come in good and this ship becomes popular upgrades are unlikely. Being a past passenger help and having a TA that bugs them does too.

Horizon, 9/5/04, Sapphire Princess, 6/13/004
Zuiderdam-2003, Constellation -2003, Infinity-2002, Vision of the Seas-2002,
Mercury-2001, Norwegian Sky-2000, Horizon-2000, Ryndam-1999, Grand Princess-1999, Westerdam-1998, Grand Princess-1998, Oriania-1997
1985-1996-3-HAL, 1-RCCL, 2-NCL, 11-Princess, 1-Royal, 1-Cunard

[kadao]

We just got off of the Sapphire Princess today. We went on the 2-night pre-inagural cruise. It was great. There was so much to do. Phew. I posted a reply on the cruise critics site in response to some questions so I will just copy and paste it here.

Here it is for those who are interested

The ship - amazing!! But kind of confusing! The main dining room (the International) was tricky to find. It was on deck 6 but you had to go on deck 7 all the way toward the end and just before the lounge go down the stairs to deck 6. Then walk alittle ways and there is the dining room. Many people said they had a lot of trouble finding it. The food was great in the there though and worth the search! Also, in the International you could order off of the menus from the other dining rooms too, but we never did because the regular menu had so many good things.

The buffet dining was very unorganized the first day because there were so many people and the wait staff didn't really know how to direct them well. Something new is that at each of the eating places there were hand sanitizing stations, and before you get your plate at the buffet, for example, they ask you to wash up.

The shower head was cool - it was adjustable so you could go from kind of an even spray to a massage spray, plus it swiveled all around. Just don't leave anything on the bathroom floor because it became like a swimming pool.

There were several pools, pretty nice. One was indoors. The hot tubs weren't very hot though. But you could get complimentary bathrobes if you ask for them, and also there were blankets you could use on deck.

The spa was great. One of the pools had this thing where you could swim against the current.

Oh yeah, the beds were comfortable! I slept really well! I was probably exhausted from all the stuff we did.

The entertainment was fun, some of the same staff from a cruise we took two years ago on the Sea Princess. Princess Idol was entertaining (we got to be one of the judges.)

Embarkation was pretty typical. Long lines but they moved pretty quick. No problems or hold ups. Logie (from the cruisecritics site) got there early and said they didn't have to wait in line at all. I guess it just depends on what time you go. We got there at 11:40 and it took about a half an hour. Lots of people. There were a lot of very friendly, helpful staff people there to direct things.

We had to be off the ship by 9:30 so my guess is you could probably board around 11:00 or maybe sooner.

Any more questions, just ask! It was a BLAST!