New2cruise2022

I’ll be staying on Deck 6 on my Sun sailing, so I can practically step out my door and walk to the Enclave in a robe if the deck plans are accurate.

Thanks! Never used it before but our next cruise I think it might be a must.

Also, 4) Hours for the Enclave?

If anyone has experience, would love to see pics or have your thoughts. The Enclave looks great. 1) Does the week pass give you access to the change room? 2) Does the change room include showers? 3) Are there lockers that lock in the change room?

These hours are for Enchanted. All of the Patters I have seen for Sun (albeit less than a dozen of them) the hours for food at O’Malley’s is only 5:30 PM-9 PM. Being closed for lunch is not going to help Princess sell Plus and Premier packages. Alfredo’s is left to do all of the heavy lifting with almost 8 hours of available casual dining compared to 3.5 hours in O’Malleys where space comes at a premium. It’s possible this is temporary until Sun is at capacity and then we will see lunch hours at O’Malley’s. It might also make sense to offer a pre fixe bento box at the sushi place for lunch/afternoons.

Nub Nuance! I like the Machiatto one quite a bit. Good taste, friend!

I understand that. So, unless I find myself living overseas, I will wait until the risk for delays and cancellation subsides. It never goes away, but the first few months can be turbulent on any line.

If I could drive to a port an inaugural cruise is leaving from … I would do it. I’m not sure I would invest in other variables (flights and lodging) that might complicate the situation more in the event of delay or cancellation. While many travel insurance companies will not cover some of these cancellation, there are fares available from airlines that are fully refundable and can be changed — even last minute. These flights of course cost more. We live in a world where you get what you pay for. A lower fare or deal is often referred to as a bargain. Pay less, get less. We bargain away flexibility and assurances for cheaper fares. If things go wrong, there is less flexibility and no assurances.

I don’t mind as much that ships don’t carry a big list of beers on tap, because logistics might be difficult. But I do wish there were more variety of bottles. I wouldn’t even care if it regularly changed and the availability was written on a chalkboard. I’m sure there is an Italian beer on board in bottles and some Asian beer available at Umai and Kai sushi. I believe we might have had Red Stripe in another bar. But all bottles.

I agree with the Breakaway Plus selection. Best at sea. Too bad they always seem to close that bar pretty early when it would be great being opened until after midnight. I think Omalleys on the Sun is the same as the last class. This is from the O’Malleys menu on the Sun. The same 4 were on tap at the Salty Dog on the Discovery a few weeks ago. The Affligem is a blonde. The Lagunitas an IPA.

I was recently on Discovery where Churchill had been converted to an arcade weeks earlier. We still enjoyed cigars on Deck 17 aft. The social aspect was good if you wanted it, but you could also puff without anyone bothering you. I don’t know if staff aren’t interested, but the area was usually pretty cluttered with old drinks and trash, and all of the furniture was looking pretty old and worn.

@CanadianBurger Great photos! Thank you for taking time to share. I noticed in video of that changing rooms at the fitness center that they have lockers. It looks like you can lock and unlock them with the Medallion. Do you happen to know if that is the case? No worries if not. Just curious and enjoying your trip!

I agree there isn’t a need to have any conclusion about the specific details of this situation. The reason to discuss here is to understand if there are any rules/procedures and are they important to Princess. It is also helpful to hear from someone that worked on a cruise that has experience and direction from the cruise line that they should never be in a guest’s stateroom. If the rule is that absolute, it shows very poor judgment on the part of the employee.

They had a package. Would have converted to zero given the age.

I absolutely agree. In this case, we did ask those questions. Did the crew member no them? Were they related? Were they from the same town? My son said they had met on the cruise. They did not know each other from before. I’m not putting the intent of the behavior out to be tried to decided. I’m solely interested in learning about the acceptability of the decision to be in a guest’s cabin or to serve alcohol to another guest.

There are plenty of happy instances of people meeting on a cruise and ending up together. But it is naive to ignore that safeguards should be in place. Regardless of age. This isn’t about underage risk. It is about any age risk. While still a small percentage, reports of sexual assaults were up last year across the cruise industry. It isn’t being a prude to recognize this and want protections put in place. The exposure to civil liability is enormous for cruise lines. While it is a nice fairytale to talk about love found between passenger and crew, the risk exists for it to go horribly wrong. That is why so many zero tolerance policies are written regarding some behaviors. https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2024/01/31/cruise-sexual-assaults-rose-2023/72409442007/

If you and @Cruise Raider are correct and this isn’t a big deal, then it will fall by the wayside and nothing will happen. So, no harm, no foul. We didn’t make any assertions or conclusions about the event. We shared it with Princess so their skilled HR professionals can look at it — with knowledge of the protocols and procedures in place — and make a smart decision.

If Princess is ok with fraternization between staff and passengers and ok with them providing alcohol and being in their staterooms, that is their business decision to build a brand that way. The point of posting was to better understand what the culture is. Your post shares a perspective that you believe it is fine. And if it is, then people can decide if that is something they welcome or want. The reason most rules — like no staff/crew being allowed to fraternize or hang out in a state room — is to protect passengers and staff/crew. It isn’t about control of taking away choice. It is reducing opportunities for situations to arise that give lawsuits traction.

Grooming is not reserved for children. In fact grooming is used with adults regularly. They are behaviors used to attract, gain trust, or gain favor. Grooming is more than candy and money. Grooming is opportunity and access. A job, alcohol that is otherwise prohibited, vacations and other opportunities. Grooming is contextual and a state of mind.

It wasn’t an entertainer, it was a staff member. We didn’t make a stink. We shared the experience and asked for insight into the culture and rules for this behavior. This is also about Princess having information to protect the brand from lawsuits or potential problems. It is more for Princess to benefit from this. We are very big Princess fans and want them to succeed. This wasn’t a drive by.

The other reason the ages matter and why we decided to share in an open forum, is because we are helping families with both teenage and young adult children understand the rules and the culture of a cruise line, be that Princess or others. We felt this experience was surprising enough (given our belief that this behavior isn’t the standard for Princess) that it might benefit someone contemplating booking a cruise. While Princess may be legally bound not to share specifics about this matter or the crew involved, the brand could benefit from making their culture better known.

Asked my son and confirmed. He spent hours across the week. Other than being from the same country, there was nothing to connect them as family or friends. They met on the cruise.

In the case of the story you related, passengers shouldn’t have to put people in their place and make judgment calls about staff behavior. This should be taught and handled by corporate.

Thank you for sharing your personal experience. I am a survivor of abuse myself and keenly aware of patterns of behavior and grooming tactics. If behavior that is out of line is merely regarded as innocent mistakes, the door is left to open for a pattern to arise and behavior to escalate.

Thank you for sharing your insights to this and confirming that the behavior is beyond suspect if the investigation supports the claim.