Live from the Sapphire Princess: first post pause sailing 9/24-10/4/2022 (Baja Peninsula & Sea of Cortez)

[Coral]

7 hours ago, Ronnieslady said:

What dining room is for Club Class ❓. Is there a sign at the entrance, like all the ships have for the Club Class ❓

Santa Fe was used previously.

Edited September 29, 2022 by Coral

[Coral]

15 hours ago, Mike45LC said:

I have booked one dinner in each of the five main dining rooms for the first five nights of my upcoming cruise.  Then, I will book the rest of the dinners based on my preference on the first five nights.  

 

This seemed like the most logical method.

The menu is the same at all of them. Santa Fe was used for Club Class last time I sailed on the ship.

[travelin.sisters]

blown glass factory (Cabo by land & sea)

demonstration

the glass oven

this entire roof is made of glass

[travelin.sisters]

Next Sunset Mona Lisa for the views

our ship & a Carnival

 

 

 

[dhanakorn]

11 hours ago, Ronnieslady said:

What dining room is for Club Class ❓. Is there a sign at the entrance, like all the ships have for the Club Class ❓

Sante Fe is the designated MDR for Club Class. Although on this cruise everyone is allowed to make reservation on this room. After trying all 5 MDRs, Santa Fe is my favorite. 

[SClakeliving]

Sailing on the Sapphire Princess in January!  Question: Is there (retractable) clothesline in the shower? Last time I sailed with Princess was 2003 to Alaska so this thread is great for me to learn about the ship and the way Princess does things. Any other tips/insider secrets would be appreciated!

Thank you!

 

[JF - retired RRT]

8 minutes ago, SClakeliving said:

Sailing on the Sapphire Princess in January!  Question: Is there (retractable) clothesline in the shower?

There should be one. Sometimes, it's missing.

[telecheck]

A new tropical storm, Orlene just formed off the coast of Western Mexico and is expected to become a hurricane by tomorrow night. It is also expected to pass through the sea between Cabo and Puerto Vallarta over the weekend and may make landfall somewhere near Mazatlan early next week. Will this storm affect this cruise?

[Mtom938]

1 hour ago, telecheck said:

A new tropical storm, Orlene just formed off the coast of Western Mexico and is expected to become a hurricane by tomorrow night. It is also expected to pass through the sea between Cabo and Puerto Vallarta over the weekend and may make landfall somewhere near Mazatlan early next week. Will this storm affect this cruise?

@telecheck it certainly has the potential.  The predicted storm track has it southwest of Puerto Vallarta and possibly affecting SAPPHIRE’S route back to Los Angeles.  I wonder if they are considering skipping that last stop?  She HAS to be in LA on 10/4 so I can go on my Hawaii trip LOL. Safety first.

[travelin.sisters]

San Jose del Cabo (Cabo by Land & Sea excursion)

 

 

 

 

 

[Ronnieslady]

5 hours ago, dhanakorn said:

Sante Fe is the designated MDR for Club Class. Although on this cruise everyone is allowed to make reservation on this room. After trying all 5 MDRs, Santa Fe is my favorite. 

Thanks for letting us know 😎. Hopefully Club Class tables are not too close together.  Have you heard any comments about that in Club Class.❓

[travelin.sisters]

Finally heading back to the Sapphire!

 

 

 

[travelin.sisters]

the Sapphire anchored at Cabo San Lucas

by day (with a Carnival & a pirate ship)

 

alone at night

[travelin.sisters]

La Paz

          Up early so that we will be ready to disembark when the ship is settled.  I much prefer excursions when we can meet on the dock rather than gathering in the Princess Theater. Sailing into La Paz was lovely, nice to see the sunrise. Sadly, the TV was not working so I couldn’t see where we were exactly as we slowly glided in. Down to the International Café for breakfast, they have lots of interesting choices, but the sandwich press needs some adjustment as the sandwiches did not get really hot & melty.

          Waiting for the announcement that we can disembark. Then off to El Serpentario: Wild Animal Rehabilitation Center & Aviary. Weather was not expected to be as hot today 93 & humidity in the 60’s. I heard there were thunderstorms in the night, but if there were we slept through them. Our balcony is very wet this morning though so that seems possible.

          I did not realize that we would not dock at La Paz (with all the chaos surrounding whether we would even sail I did not do my usual research & planning), but at the Port of Pichilingue which is about 20 minutes/10.5 miles away from La Paz itself. It is a small port getting maybe 2-3 cruise ships a month during the cruising season & 1-2 ships or ferries bringing in supplies each day. Disembarkation was super easy, just down the gangway & off to our tour bus.

          Our guide Marcos & driver Jose Luis were there to get out tour started. The bus was very nice & AC almost as good as in Cabo. As we started the 30-minute drive to El Serpentario, Marcos shared historical & ecological info about the area. It was a beautiful drive with the desert & cacti on one side & ocean, beaches & mangroves on the other. Arriving in La Paz, we drove along the Malecon which is sprinkled with interesting statuary, shops & bordered by the ocean. If the day had not been so hot, I would have been tempted to return on the free shuttle bus & walk along the Malecon. It reminded me of southern California beach towns from my childhood.

          El Serpentario is a very interesting place. It is not primarily for tourists but for the rehabilitation & preservation of native species & educating school children. Most of the signage is only in Spanish but Marcos, who has been a volunteer their for 11 years gave us a great tour & talk about the reptiles cared for there. I found it very interesting to learn about local species. We saw a turtle, iguana, snakes & a tarantula during the talk & other species in their cages or habitats. Animals are brought there for rehabilitation & some are part of breeding programs to insure the survival of local species.             My sister loved the aviary where the birds flocked to eat the seeds & grain that she bought to feed them. It felt good to be supporting something that is important to the local ecosystem & the education of local children.

          On our return to the port, we strolled (& shopped) thorough local vendors & were quickly back on the ship. La Paz is the first port where it felt like we did better with pesos although American dollars di still work. After lunch we spent the afternoon relaxing. We were happily surprised at dinner to find that they had removed the extra chairs & table settings to convert the table for 5 that we had been eating at to a table for 3 which allowed us more space & made it easier for the servers to reach things. The headwaiter & maitre’D are both constantly visible, checking with passengers, encouraging & training the waitstaff, & pitching in to help when needed. It is very obvious that everyone is working as hard as possible to make this cruise the best they can.

          In today’s announcement, the captain addressed the fact that air conditioning has been problematic both in some people’s cabins & in public areas. We have been fortunate that our AC system has worked correctly, but others have had varying problems. He told us that the problem is not the capacity of the system, but rather calibrating the system for the various areas & that there is a team dedicated to fixing this in all areas as rapidly as possible. While it is miserable to have your AC not work (I know from experience on another cruise) that misery is doubled when the problem is ignored or treated as trivial so it was good to hear him admit that there is a problem & address how they are dealing with it.

          We went to our first show tonight. Nathaniel Rankin was billed as a magician. His show was very enjoyable, but I would class him pore as an entertainer or as a street performer. His act was a combination of juggling, magic & comedy & I would definitely go to see him again.

          Set sail about 5:30-6 & tomorrow morning we are in Loreto.

          Up next La Pax photos—then Loreto.

My posts in this LIVE:

pre-cruise musing—post 1

photos of berth 46—post 2

ready to go—post 23

onboard & ready to report—post 60

embarkation day—post 67

embarkation photos—post 68

embarkation lunch photos—post 70 & 72

exploring the ship—post 80

ship photos—posts 82, 84, 88, 89, 100 & 101

day 2—at sea—post 102

day 2 photos—posts 109, 110, 111 & 112

answers to questions—post 123

Cabo San Lucas—post 126

Cabo photos—posts 147, 150,153, 154, 160, 162 & 163

[californiagirl]

I’m thoroughly enjoying your trip report and pictures.  Thank you for taking time to post.  We were on Sapphire in 2009 when the swine flu hit and we were switched from a Mexico cruise to a California coastal cruise.  She was only 5 years old and absolutely gorgeous.  I was interested in your itinerary as you are sailing in the Sea of Cortez in addition to the usual Western Mexico stops.  It is an itinerary I would like to do.  I’m looking forward to hearing about Loreto.
 

You mentioned in an early post that there were no sinks on Majestic when you sailed on her.  When I was on Majestic in February there were sinks just outside the buffet on both sides and both ends of the buffet.  This was in addition to hand sanitizer stations.  Each ship I’ve been on since the restart has had sinks outside of the buffet.  Regal and Majestic had staff stationed at the sinks to encourage passengers to use them.  Discovery had staff stationed at the sinks only during the busiest times.   

[Ronnieslady]

10 hours ago, Coral said:

The menu is the same at all of them. Santa Fe was used for Club Class last time I sailed on the ship.

Is there enough tables for Club Class.❓   Our experience on the Grand & a few other ships, was if you got there @ 5:15 & wanted a table for 2 you had to wait. Because there was always early eaters.  
  Thanks for responding,   Grace
 

 

[Ronnieslady]

1 hour ago, travelin.sisters said:

  In today’s announcement, the captain addressed the fact that air conditioning has been problematic both in some people’s cabins & in public areas. We have been fortunate that our AC system has worked correctly, but others have had varying problems. He told us that the problem is not the capacity of the system, but rather calibrating the system for the various areas & that there is a team dedicated to fixing this in all areas as rapidly as possible. While it is miserable to have your AC not work (I know from experience on another cruise) that misery is doubled when the problem is ignored or treated as trivial so it was good to hear him admit that there is a problem & address how they are

I hope it will be fixed by the next cruise on the 4th of October.  This happened to us before on the Star .  They blamed the barnacles had clogged up the air conditioner for the whole ship, since the Ocean was very warm. We had come back from Alaska into LA .  Once in LA the air was out. I    And we were on a 5 dayer to Cabo.  No air for about 4 days.  It was a nightmare.  The ship overnighted in Cabo & people in inside cabins slept outside.  Those with balconies slept on the balcony.  Everyone near us all slept with their regular doors wide open.  There was no breeze because  the ship was not moving , since it was an overnighter.  I guess you could call it a cruise from Hell.  Air worked great once we got back to LA that morning of disembarkation.
 

[travelin.sisters]

captain just announced that PV will be canceled & we will call at San Diego on Monday...will share more details when I get to today's report

Edited September 30, 2022 by travelin.sisters
spelling

[Mike45LC]

25 minutes ago, travelin.sisters said:

captain just announced that PV will be canceled & we will call at San Diego on Monday...will share more details when I get to today's report

I'm sorry to hear this.  I hope you enjoy the extra day at sea!

[Mike45LC]

I have a question about Cabo.  I know that the tender service was not operating between 10:30 and 7:00 a.m., but did the ship remain anchored in the Bay or did she sail into international waters?  Did the casino open that night while "overnighting" in Cabo?

 

The answer is probably in the Patters that have been posted, but I can't enlarge the tiny print enough on my computer to read them!!

[fpsphil]

31 minutes ago, Mike45LC said:

I have a question about Cabo.  I know that the tender service was not operating between 10:30 and 7:00 a.m., but did the ship remain anchored in the Bay or did she sail into international waters?  Did the casino open that night while "overnighting" in Cabo?

 

The answer is probably in the Patters that have been posted, but I can't enlarge the tiny print enough on my computer to read them!!

I was watching the Cabo webcam that day. I did not see the ship leave anchor

[GoHuskies!]

1 hour ago, Mike45LC said:

I have a question about Cabo.  I know that the tender service was not operating between 10:30 and 7:00 a.m., but did the ship remain anchored in the Bay or did she sail into international waters?  Did the casino open that night while "overnighting" in Cabo?

 

The answer is probably in the Patters that have been posted, but I can't enlarge the tiny print enough on my computer to read them!!

You should be able to enlarge the print on your computer screen.  If you have a touch screen or a touch pad, just put two fingers on it and separate them.  That should enlarge it.

[GoHuskies!]

2 hours ago, travelin.sisters said:

captain just announced that PV will be canceled & we will call at San Diego on Monday...will share more details when I get to today's report

travelin.sisters-- Thank you so much for your very informative information!  We are going on the 

Sapphire to Hawaii on October 4, immediately after your cruise, and what you have posted (along with all the other posters on this thread) has been invaluable!  An incredible source--I'll have to watch for further threads of cruises that you post.  Thanks again.

Jim and Norita, Green Valley, Arizona

[Papa Yoda]

3 hours ago, Mike45LC said:

I have a question about Cabo.  I know that the tender service was not operating between 10:30 and 7:00 a.m., but did the ship remain anchored in the Bay or did she sail into international waters?  Did the casino open that night while "overnighting" in Cabo?

 

The answer is probably in the Patters that have been posted, but I can't enlarge the tiny print enough on my computer to read them!!

 

Ship remains at anchor, no Casino

[Mtom938]

The ol’ girl is haulin’ tail down the Baja peninsula to get ‘round in front of Orlene.  Should be fine as the storm really should not be in a threatening position until 10/2  - 10/3.  Enjoy San Diego!  I loved my work trips there.