Sun Princess - Original

[Suite Susie]

On 3/9/2023 at 10:01 PM, dides said:

I've tried to do a marked up version with the decks and main aft venues (where are have all the experts gone who did this?). 

 

 

Note that Princess stated as part of their PR yesterday that there is a cantilevered restaurant on deck 17 aft provisionally called Altitude

 

It seems to me that very few balcony staterooms will look directly down onto the sea as most seem to be inset so will just look down over the Promenade deck (like P&O Iona/Arvia) but at least the lifeboats will be hidden underneath.  

Some notable exceptions might be:

- the balconies in the middle of the Spheres - the upper balconies may just overlook the lower balconies because of the curve.

- the Cove balconies under the promenade

- the forward balconies overlooking the bow 

- the central aft facing Accessible deluxe balconies on decks 10 to 14 will look down on the Wake View Terrace (much like the Virgin Voyages ship design). These do look enormous though!

 

 

.

Fantastic details. Thank you so much. We are booked for 7th September cruise in a Suite somewhere at the back, so very interested to see the progress in this area. 

[Mary Ann 2]

From what I've seen, it appears that the Promenade will be mostly outdoor dining not like the current Grand class Promenades.  The Reserve Cabana mini suites on deck 9 forward and aft of the Reserve Cabana open deck I believe will look straight down into the water. (maybe a little lifeboat showing).  I also think as you mentioned that some rooms (like the non-Reserve Cabana mini suites) in the middle of the sphere will look down into the water.  Those are the rooms we have considered as we like to be able to look down at the water.

[dides]

Another video from the shipyard visit this time from Princess and an extra sneak peak of the Dome build

 

Noticed that they are using Richmond International who were involved in the P&O Iona design so wonder if there will be similarities.....

 

 

Edited March 16, 2023 by dides

[c-boy]

I'm hoping to hear info on the new reserve and signature amenities. 

[Astro Flyer]

Here’s a CC article from 3/10 about their tour of Sun Princess:

 

https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/7293/

 

[snoozecrooze]

This was actually shared by Princess about four weeks ago to commemorate the Super Bowl but I just stumbled upon it now and I thought I'd share in case anyone hadn't seen this rendering of the Sun's lido pool deck (AKA deck 17) yet:

 

Just as a means of comparison, here was a rendering Princess released when promoting Sky:

 

I may just be a slighttttt Debbie Downer here but I think the Sun's pool deck may get pretty tight pretty quickly. The pools look narrower (seems like no walk-in stairs either but these days I don't expect them anymore) and it just looks like the stage in the front and the passageway in the middle, as small as they are by themselves, seem to actually take up quite a bit of space from the deck itself. Thoughts?

 

[dides]

12 hours ago, snoozecrooze said:

This was actually shared by Princess about four weeks ago to commemorate the Super Bowl but I just stumbled upon it now and I thought I'd share in case anyone hadn't seen this rendering of the Sun's lido pool deck (AKA deck 17) yet:

 

Just as a means of comparison, here was a rendering Princess released when promoting Sky:

 

I may just be a slighttttt Debbie Downer here but I think the Sun's pool deck may get pretty tight pretty quickly. The pools look narrower (seems like no walk-in stairs either but these days I don't expect them anymore) and it just looks like the stage in the front and the passageway in the middle, as small as they are by themselves, seem to actually take up quite a bit of space from the deck itself. Thoughts?

 

 

Is that a stage or just the two sets of staircases squeezed in the middle? Hard to make it out. Plus it seems the two extra hot tubs are taking up most of the space there.

I agree about the width of the pools though - looking too much like the horrible tiny paddling pool offering they have on Virgin Voyages!

What do you think that blue area is in the bottom left of the picture behind the loungers? Is it the edge of the ship, another pool or hot tub, a SeaWalk or something else?

 

 

Edited March 17, 2023 by dides

[snoozecrooze]

3 hours ago, dides said:

Is that a stage or just the two sets of staircases squeezed in the middle? Hard to make it out. Plus it seems the two extra hot tubs are taking up most of the space there.

I agree about the width of the pools though - looking too much like the horrible tiny paddling pool offering they have on Virgin Voyages!

What do you think that blue area is in the bottom left of the picture behind the loungers? Is it the edge of the ship, another pool or hot tub, a SeaWalk or something else?

I think the middle platform thing is kind of...well, both? It has stairs, ramps, and the center part, I guess, could be a makeshift stage for the sailaway parties they do.

 

Yeah, the more that I look at the deck again, those hot tubs look a bit out of place on the deck. My solution is that they should've just axed the middle stage/passageway thing and put the hot tubs there, just like they have on Sky/Enchanted/Discovery, and then hoist two extra hot tubs up like they have on Celebrity Beyond (they have them in the shape of a martini glass) so that the lido deck itself has more room to maneuver. The deck itself looks quite dense right now.

 

I think the bottom left corner is just slightly different tiling, just like the tiling that Sky has installed to cover up what used to be the gap between the Sea Walk and the rest of the lido deck.

[waltd]

Just another pool deck to me.   🙄

[dides]

50 minutes ago, snoozecrooze said:

Yeah, the more that I look at the deck again, those hot tubs look a bit out of place on the deck. My solution is that they should've just axed the middle stage/passageway thing and put the hot tubs there, just like they have on Sky/Enchanted/Discovery, and then hoist two extra hot tubs up like they have on Celebrity Beyond (they have them in the shape of a martini glass) so that the lido deck itself has more room to maneuver. The deck itself looks quite dense right now.

Agreed, they need to go back to the drawing board, literally 😀  I think the staircases at each corner - as on the Sky - are more aesthetically pleasing and make better use of space. .We did like the martini glass hot tub when we tried it out the Edge but I doubt they would want to be seen to copy from another line. 

 

Edited March 17, 2023 by dides

[snoozecrooze]

4 hours ago, dides said:

Agreed, they need to go back to the drawing board, literally 😀  I think the staircases at each corner - as on the Sky - are more aesthetically pleasing and make better use of space. .We did like the martini glass hot tub when we tried it out the Edge but I doubt they would want to be seen to copy from another line. 

Yes, definitely not a martini glass lol - perhaps a design inspired by Neptune's trident instead (at least they used to embrace that theming, but alas) We'll just have to imagine all of the possible changes we'd make anyways. Just about a year out from seeing how things will go! 

 

5 hours ago, waltd said:

Just another pool deck to me.   🙄

We're just nerding out on a cruise forum! 😆

[waltd]

Its cool.😀

[dides]

17 hours ago, snoozecrooze said:

We're just nerding out on a cruise forum! 😆

 

lol exactly... in that vein,  I have discovered a standard bathroom rendering produced for Princess that I haven't seen before:

 

 

This doesn't match any of the floorplans I've seen but imagine the entrance being directly behind you. The shower has a door (there are hinges) but no shelf but then that could be against this wall. I know, more speculation. Maybe it's just an early design to help capture the style. 

 

[snoozecrooze]

5 hours ago, dides said:

This doesn't match any of the floorplans I've seen but imagine the entrance being directly behind you. The shower has a door (there are hinges) but no shelf but then that could be against this wall. I know, more speculation. Maybe it's just an early design to help capture the style. 

It's a stunner, in terms of size and feel. Unfortunately, the bathrooms won't be that large in most of the cabins lol, but we can dream. But the rendering you've shared does match the overall feel of what the diagrams are showing. The fact that the shower receptacle doesn't seem to be angled also makes it seem like it's finally catching up to Holland America (I mean, this is really something they should've done from at least the Sky onwards).

 

A thing I've been thinking about, actually, is how the bathrooms from the interior cabins are the exact same as those even in the cabana mini-suites. I think that might come to be a disappointment for those who expect a larger bathroom (such as with double sink) and/or a tub. I'm honestly really surprised by how similar it is, actually, and I'm predicting it will be one of the criticisms from those who expect more, that is, if the diagrams are accurate.

[fpsphil]

One thing I don’t like from the pool deck renders is it appears there is the higher glass along the sun deck and not straight railing. Not sure if this is a height rule but its my favorite thing to be up on the top of Sun deck and be able to have an unrestricted view to the ocean WITHOUT glass in front of me

[dides]

11 hours ago, snoozecrooze said:

A thing I've been thinking about, actually, is how the bathrooms from the interior cabins are the exact same as those even in the cabana mini-suites. I think that might come to be a disappointment for those who expect a larger bathroom (such as with double sink) and/or a tub. I'm honestly really surprised by how similar it is, actually, and I'm predicting it will be one of the criticisms from those who expect more, that is, if the diagrams are accurate.

I think you will be proved right about this. The mini suite, cabana rooms and lowest category Signature Suite will have the same bathroom as a standard stateroom - no tub and no extra space which you would expect when you pay extra.

 

The Signature Suite floorplan does actually match the orientation of the bathroom render. Note that it is the same size, 304 sq ft, as the mini suite with the components moved around! So it is truly like a MSC Yacht Club cabin in that you are 'slumming it' in basic accomodation but getting all the other suite amenities.

 

Signature Suite

Mini Suite

 

 

 

 

[dides]

15 hours ago, fpsphil said:

One thing I don’t like from the pool deck renders is it appears there is the higher glass along the sun deck and not straight railing. Not sure if this is a height rule but its my favorite thing to be up on the top of Sun deck and be able to have an unrestricted view to the ocean WITHOUT glass in front of me

 

Hopefully it doesn't make it to the build. If you look at the Sky Princess render, it has the same double glass panelling but they reduced it to a single panel for the actual ship, along the main part of the deck anyway:

 

 

[snoozecrooze]

I noticed Princess released a separate deck plan for sailings before and after October 14, 2024. I cross-checked both deck plans and only noticed one difference (but anyone can add anything I might have missed) -- 

 

• Deck 14: the MD mini-suite category becomes the ME mini-suite category; this affects 16 cabins.

[azbirdmom]

Here's a link to the presentation that the Princess Sales / Marketing department shared with travel agents today.  Skip through the first 10 minutes or so and then the next hour will be the presentation by someone who has worked on this Sun Princess plans for the last 6 years.  Very interesting and I'd sure like to know what is behind the black door!

  https://www.facebook.com/PrincessVPSales/videos/762343635172359

[snoozecrooze]

Some highlights from Richard Parker's (he helped design everything) presentation in the video from Facebook that I don't think have been publicly shown or clarified yet:

 

A different look at the Piazza, this time looking at the starboard side of deck eight with emphasis on the "sphere" glass

 

Coffee Currents will be located on the starboard side of deck seven. It was added to hopefully alleviate pressure on the International Cafe and will include new coffee drinks (such as nitro coffee).

 

Bellini's will be on the port side of deck seven. Emphasis was made on the fact that the overall design of these venues are just 'evolutionary' from what we've seen on existing ships.

 

It's an expansion of the Ocean Terrace concept to become a type of specialty restaurant.

 

I don't think Richard has salivated over anything more, both in this video and also at the float-out ceremony in Italy when he invited all of those travel folks onboard. I hope it lives up to the hype, because otherwise...

 

Another look at Alfredo's, but Richard said to ignore the incorrect sign in the middle. Will also feature Princess's first true Neapolitan pizza oven (up to 950F).

 

New outdoor lounge space for the International Cafe on deck 9

 

Additional details and clarity:

- Capacity is 950 at the lower-end, 1050 at the higher-end, average will be at about 1000

- Stage does rotate and elevate

- The 2 pillars seen are the only visual obstructions in the venue.

- 3 layouts: traditional proscenium (like on current fleet), keyhole (stage in front and another one upstage of that), and the round (like in the rendering)

- There will be drink holders in the seat armrests.

 

Newly designed, enclosed venue.

 

The dome structure itself does not open, as "The Dome" is a climate-controlled space. Emphasis was made that they want to have "Cirque-esque" shows here. The very back of The Dome (the 'tree-like' thing) is a cascading water feature. The Dome is not an adults-only area. There will be a bar in the vicinity, with some further details to come about maybe snack options.

 

It will be open to everyone.

 

- Spans decks 6, 7, and 8.

- Deck 6 will be the most traditional, relaxed pace of dining. The higher the deck you go, the faster and more casual the dining level will become.

- Additional clarity on the 9 private meeting areas (in which he said during the float-out ceremony tour that it comes with conference facilities) -- if they are not in use, then they will just be integrated back into the dining room and used by anybody.

 

Mentioned that this could also become an evening entertainment spot.

 

Another look at the Sanctuary, which has been moved to the aft (deck 18) for more space. More cabanas. Has a swimming pool in its area now. Still adults-only.

 

Well, Princess sanctioned the release of this image so it's definitely not just an idealized rendering anymore. (cc @dides!!)

 

Mini suites come with a "luxury shower" that is "upgraded" from what one gets in a balcony or interior cabin (you can notice this in the diagrams by the different-looking showerhead). All bathtubs have also been removed from mini suites due to "customer feedback" (conclusions were that more customers preferred a "luxury shower" than a bathtub)

 

(No one asked Richard if they will have their own menu; we'll just have to see)

 

The door between the cabin and the cabana is a multi-folding panel door (I'm imagining something like on Celebrity's Edge-class verandas).

 

Repeatedly reiterated that you see what you think you're seeing. You can literally walk from your balcony onto the cabana deck if you have a balcony on deck 9 along the cabana deck area. Just open the little glass door on your balcony and voila.

 

This will be for suites only. No one asked about the menus for here either.

 

I included this picture just because Richard disclosed that the pool between the suites deck area and Sanctuary will actually be shared (the suites deck area is just aft of the Sanctuary).

 

Other miscellaneous notes:

- The ship is built to be ADA-compliant (fully-accessible)

- Emphasis was made on the fact that all cabins will have at least one couch. (Not sure about the solo cabins though; those weren't discussed.)

- The classic Princess walk-in closets on mini-suites and below were removed to increase livable space in cabins.

- All cabins will have bedside power outlets/USB plugs.

- As expected, the Sun will do Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries once she's in Fort Lauderdale.

[dides]

24 minutes ago, snoozecrooze said:

Some highlights from Richard Parker's (he helped design everything) presentation in the video from Facebook that I don't think have been publicly shown or clarified yet:.

 

Great summary @snoozecrooze- we just watched the video over breakfast and lol'd when we saw the bathroom render pop up!

Other nuggets that interested us:

- Balcony staterooms will have 2 different layouts where the bed will either be by the window or by the bathroom (Edge class ships have this)

- The Sea View Terrace is designed to reduce wind (this did cause concern as it's uncovered and we know how bad the Retreat pool got on Royal class!)

- The Sanctuary will have cabanas with sea views. 

Really not sure how they will manage access to the Signature Sun Deck if the pool is shared by the Sanctuary. What makes it special for suite guests only? And do they need to book a space in the Sanctuary as well?

 

 

 

Edited March 24, 2023 by dides

[Geoffa30]

Thanks @snoozecrooze for posting the link and the summary. Will watch the video later.

 

Only comment I have is I certainly hope they have a different menu in the Signature restaurant. I imagine if there isn’t, there will be uproar especially as it makes the new Princess suite experience less competitive compared to other lines.

[azbirdmom]

Nice summary @snoozecrooze !  Will add one more screen shot of the suite lounge which does have a bar (to answer one of the other questions that have come up recently).

 

[c-boy]

I am pleased to hear this ship design will be addressing the want's and desires of princess luxury clients.

[snoozecrooze]

12 hours ago, dides said:

Really not sure how they will manage access to the Signature Sun Deck if the pool is shared by the Sanctuary. What makes it special for suite guests only? And do they need to book a space in the Sanctuary as well?

Yep, to be honest, I have to agree. If they're trying to compete against Celebrity's Retreat concept on their newest ships, it's really a far cry, I have to say. As a non-suite guest, I'm very happy that the front of the ship is completely open to everybody, and I enjoy that the ship is not as seemingly segregated as it could've been, as seen on other lines' vessels. On the other hand, if I were a suite guest, I think I would expect more than the "private deck area" that they're selling here. Overall, though, I don't think Princess really needs to lean drastically in this direction, because I don't see Princess and Celebrity as targeting the same exact market overall; the size of Sun alone is already a big tell.