What will Island Princess look like after May 2015?

[Kennykat]

For me, the best feature of the ship was the teak wrap around Promenade deck, and moving the gym to a dungeon like location for a regular user is a deal breaker. Those who don't walk, run or work out will not notice; but, for me...another ship. K

[Astro Flyer]

Sorry...... Change is not always a good thing. The ship for us is still a destination in itself. :(

 

Change is not always an improvement & based on my Island/Coral experience the changes definitely are not an improvement. :(

[Corfe Mixture]

I still think that for everyone except from the relatively small, but highly 'vocal', group of perhaps less than 20, who insist on telling us this will be an unmitigated disaster, for the rest of us it will be a non-event.

 

We like Island very much and don't expect to be disappointed when we next cruise on her this Christmas.

 

Unfortunately there will be some folks who have never cruised on Island who will be put off by all the doom and gloom in this thread. That will be sad as they will miss out on a wonderful experience.

[Bazz100]

Isn't it Princess policy to classify balconies that have steel below the handrail rather than glass as Obstructed or Partially Obstructed?

[Corfe Mixture]

Isn't it Princess policy to classify balconies that have steel below the handrail rather than glass as Obstructed or Partially Obstructed?

 

No.

 

The Owner's Suites on Ocean and Pacific all have steel below the handrail and they are not classed as obstructed.

 

Also the Vista class ships used by P&O have steel balconies towards the front of the lowest balcony deck and although they make a point of telling you this is the case, they are not classed as obstructed view.

 

In both of the above cases I am talking from personal experience.

 

On the Sun class ships ALL the balconies are apertures cut into the hull and those on the lower deck have smaller apertures. In the case of these ships I only have personal experience of the higher decks, but even these are mostly steel below the rail.

 

Obstructed balconies are normally those where there is an angle to one of the sides, often the last or the first cabin on a deck, such that there is not a full width aperture for the whole height.

[Mackenzie1]

The hard part for those sailing Island Princess in the future will be how to, without emotion, sift through the 'sky is falling' posts and the 'it was a great vacation' posts - sorting fact from opinion - and use that information to their advantage.

 

:D

 

An important factor will be finding out how long it takes to get seating in the main dining room with all of the added cabins.

[jpj39]

An important factor will be finding out how long it takes to get seating in the main dining room with all of the added cabins.

 

not to worry half those people will be eating at the buffet!!

[Colo Cruiser]

I still think that for everyone except from the relatively small, but highly 'vocal', group of perhaps less than 20, who insist on telling us this will be an unmitigated disaster, for the rest of us it will be a non-event.

 

 

This applies to everything posted on CC. Its a miniscule number regardless.

 

Even the threads where you join in as part of the "vocal" crowd. :cool:

 

Why are your opinions important on the things you are passionate about but others opinions are not?

[sunsetbeachgal]

I am about as positive as they come, and enjoy change. We were on one of the first to sailings on The Royal Princess in the Med. after she came out, to many reports of doom and gloom, and I loved the ship and was not afraid to state my opinion on CC. Change can be good...

 

But, to take a ship that along with the Coral, are great vessels, to add numerous cabins, remove public spaces and part of the promenade deck, and not to even add an International Cafe or more dining space really is adding insult to injury. I just do not see anything positive about this change for anyone except the bean counters.

Edited May 19, 2015 by sunsetbeachgal

[RLK33853]

We have traveled on the Island twice and it certainly is one of our favorites - along with the Coral and the Sapphire. We will be back on her in two weeks and while it is our belief that we may not like some of the changes, they are what they are and until we see them in person we will reserve judgement.

 

The loss of the public spaces is definitely an issue that may affect many - but I am open to seeing how the Cruise Director handles it. One of the reasons for liking the Island was that it had an open feeling with lots of public space and numerous venues to host entertainment. Not sure if any of that will change.

 

The same goes for the new fitness area - while we liked the old one, as long as the new area has the appropriate space and equipment, we will be fine. If it is cramped or has less than the required equipment, then we will report on it.

 

The addition of extra cabins/passengers may be the issue that is more of a concern versus the loss of space. Anytime Dining may be backed up or rushed. If that is the case, this may be a deal breaker for us as we like to have leisurely dinners. The same goes for the entertainment - if we are unable to enjoy some shows due to passengers being turned away, we won't be happy.

 

Either way we will do a complete review of how it all shakes out. We are loyal Princess cruisers but will call it as we see it. For now we are looking forward to getting on board and enjoying the Med. When we disembark in Venice I am sure we will have had a good time - that is up to us, not Princess. Whether the Island will remain on our list of favorite ships, now that one is up to Princess.

[rinkrat10]

Thanks for your honest remarks! Have a great holiday!

[Corfe Mixture]

This applies to everything posted on CC. Its a miniscule number regardless.

 

Even the threads where you join in as part of the "vocal" crowd. :cool:

 

Why are your opinions important on the things you are passionate about but others opinions are not?

 

 

Pot, Kettle and Black are the words you are looking for ;)

 

Though I must say that I don't keep banging on about something for ever, whereas this thread has been running with the same doom and gloom tone for an awfully long time.

[Astro Flyer]

We have traveled on the Island twice and it certainly is one of our favorites - along with the Coral and the Sapphire. We will be back on her in two weeks and while it is our belief that we may not like some of the changes, they are what they are and until we see them in person we will reserve judgement.

 

The loss of the public spaces is definitely an issue that may affect many - but I am open to seeing how the Cruise Director handles it. One of the reasons for liking the Island was that it had an open feeling with lots of public space and numerous venues to host entertainment. Not sure if any of that will change.

 

The same goes for the new fitness area - while we liked the old one, as long as the new area has the appropriate space and equipment, we will be fine. If it is cramped or has less than the required equipment, then we will report on it.

 

The addition of extra cabins/passengers may be the issue that is more of a concern versus the loss of space. Anytime Dining may be backed up or rushed. If that is the case, this may be a deal breaker for us as we like to have leisurely dinners. The same goes for the entertainment - if we are unable to enjoy some shows due to passengers being turned away, we won't be happy.

 

Either way we will do a complete review of how it all shakes out. We are loyal Princess cruisers but will call it as we see it. For now we are looking forward to getting on board and enjoying the Med. When we disembark in Venice I am sure we will have had a good time - that is up to us, not Princess. Whether the Island will remain on our list of favorite ships, now that one is up to Princess.

Thanks in advance for taking the time to do a review of your cruise. :)

 

I have similar concerns as you & if sailing on the Island would also go on the cruise with an open mind & ready to have a good cruise. I always have a good time on a cruise...just some are slightly better than others. I look forward to your objective review & to read about your post-drydock experiences.

 

The Island is about 15,000 tons larger than Sun-class ships & both have about the same passenger capacity. Thus to me there was enough public space to handle more passengers. However things like removing 1 of the 2 showrooms and no additional dining space have me skeptical about the changes.

 

Hopefully they added additional berthing spaces for more crew to serve over 200 more passengers. In recent years it seems that the ratio of service staff (waiters, cabin stewards, bar tenders) to passengers has resulted in fewer of them. Staff has worked hard to compensate for less crew doing more work but it can result in slower, less cheerful service when the crew is overworked. :(

 

Princess has removed public spaces while adding more passengers and hopefully for those sailing on the Island they have also increased their staff.

Edited May 19, 2015 by Astro Flyer

[Thumper69]

The suspense is killing me! I wish there were more up to date images. I'm really looking forward to my Panama cruise next Feb and have booked one of the new suites.

[MacGuffin]

The reason this thread of doom and gloom has been going on for an awfully long time is because the Island and Coral have an awful lot of loyal, repeat passengers, which is why they're constantly sold out. One of the biggest reasons for the loyal repeaters is simple: these two unique ships had the highest passenger space ratio of any ships sailing for a mass market company. Removing public space to add passenger capacity will lower this ratio. While the new gym and Sanctuary will probably be improvements, and the loss of a wrap around promenade is sad but no deal breaker, there's no way around the simple math that more passengers in less public space will mean bigger crowds in the dining room, lido buffet, lounges, elevators, sun decks and pools. The loyal repeaters flocked to these ships for their spaciousness. With the modifications, these ships will now be more ordinary with nothing much to make them stand out. I had my heart set on a partial Panama Canal on the Coral in April 2016, now I'm seriously considering the Zuiderdam because we prefer the ports and reviews after it's own recent refurb indicate many of the wear and tear problems she's had for years have finally been fixed. HAL fixed what was broken on that ship. Had the Coral not gone under the knife it would have been a no brainer for us. :confused:

[black_velvet]

I only heard about the refit today, so I'm way behind on the news. I've sailed on Island twice before, and it was my favourite ship. I agree with you that 'unmitigated disaster' is probably too strong, but I know it will be far from a non-event for me if I ever cruise on it again. Two of the things which made it my favourite ship were the wraparound promenade deck on one level, and the high-ceilinged Universe Lounge, which allowed some really big shows in two different venues.

 

For me, any further cruises on the ship will have the reminders of what used to be, and has been lost. I'm sure I'd enjoy another cruise on Island: it's hard to imagine when I wouldn't enjoy a cruise - but the enjoyment would be tempered by the knowledge of the things which are no longer there. As you say, that's unlikely to be an issue for passengers who have not cruised on her before.

 

I can understand your thinking many people have overreacted, but will it really be a non-event for you? Will you not miss walking round the aft or sitting in the Universe Lounge at all?

 

Regards

 

Rod

 

I still think that for everyone except from the relatively small, but highly 'vocal', group of perhaps less than 20, who insist on telling us this will be an unmitigated disaster, for the rest of us it will be a non-event.

 

We like Island very much and don't expect to be disappointed when we next cruise on her this Christmas.

 

Unfortunately there will be some folks who have never cruised on Island who will be put off by all the doom and gloom in this thread. That will be sad as they will miss out on a wonderful experience.

[Kineticoh20]

I will be curious on what the listed tonnage will be know? I am not overly concerned about the changes made, I will immensely enjoy my Med cruise. Of all the complaints the one that bothers me the most that nobody has brought up is the line of cabins along side of the casino! Too me that makes no sense at all, just odd. Making the casino smaller to accommodate those cabins was an error in judgment in my opinion.

[Ronnieslady]

The suspense is killing me! I wish there were more up to date images. I'm really looking forward to my Panama cruise next Feb and have booked one of the new suites.

 

I agree, I would love to see the up to date images of the aft part of the Island.

I guess we will just book one of the old suites. I don't want to take a chance that the balconies on the aft will not be the blue glass.

[rdsqrl]

I will be curious on what the listed tonnage will be know? I am not overly concerned about the changes made, I will immensely enjoy my Med cruise. Of all the complaints the one that bothers me the most that nobody has brought up is the line of cabins along side of the casino! Too me that makes no sense at all, just odd. Making the casino smaller to accommodate those cabins was an error in judgment in my opinion.

A similar change was made on the Coral a year or two ago and there has ensued no cascade of complaints about the casino being too small. These two ships had huge casinos for their relative size before remodeling.

 

And really, how much room do you need in there? If the casino is too crowded, you can just go outside and throw your money over the rail -- same difference.

[Kineticoh20]

Thank you for your cynical response!

[marinegreen]

According to the bridge cam, Island Princess now sailing for Venice.

[Bazz100]

She is indeed underway. Steaming at 11.5kn with an ETA of 16.00. Looks like they gave her a thorough workout during her sea trial.

[jpj39]

She is indeed underway. Steaming at 11.5kn with an ETA of 16.00. Looks like they gave her a thorough workout during her sea trial.

 

Finally this will end the disucussion "How will the Island Princess look after refit" AMEN

Moving on to experience the island princess 2nd Mediterrean cruise , should be a great cruise:p

[Bazz100]

Not until we see some pics of the finished product I fear.

[dmwnc1959]

Here ya go...sorry for the image size but I wanted to show enough detail.

 

 

 

 

 

Here are the decks annotated...

 

(Credit images to Marjan Stropnik)

Edited May 20, 2015 by dmwnc1959