Sun Princess Signature Benefits and Experiences

[jwattle]

5 hours ago, WonderMan3 said:

That doesn’t make sense though. The suite breakfast on this ship is held in the Signature restaurant. That venue doesn’t exist on the other ships and yes is held in a specialty restaurant. To say that this was “not the specialty menu” is obvious because that specialty suite breakfast is not offered on Sun, it’s only in the Signature restaurant. 

Then my apologies; I thought they would still have a free mimosa brekkie somewhere

[CalTexCruiser]

Anyone have any thoughts on picking Penthouse Suites on deck 15 vs 17?

 

The Penthouse Suites on deck 17 are right below The Sanctuary, which raises the question of whether these suites will be noisy when loungers are being moved around starting early in the morning.  With the large number of loungers in The Sanctuary, noise concerns may definitely be a concern if the deck 17 suites are not well sound insulated.

 

We were initially assigned a deck 17 Penthouse Suite on our sailing next year, but decided to move to deck 15 due to the potential noise issue.  I think the deck 15 Penthouse Suites also have the advantage of direct access to the Signature Lounge without having to take an elevator, much like the Penthouse Suites on Royal class ships.

[Skiah]

1 hour ago, CalTexCruiser said:

Anyone have any thoughts on picking Penthouse Suites on deck 15 vs 17?

 

The Penthouse Suites on deck 17 are right below The Sanctuary, which raises the question of whether these suites will be noisy when loungers are being moved around starting early in the morning.  With the large number of loungers in The Sanctuary, noise concerns may definitely be a concern if the deck 17 suites are not well sound insulated.

 

We were initially assigned a deck 17 Penthouse Suite on our sailing next year, but decided to move to deck 15 due to the potential noise issue.  I think the deck 15 Penthouse Suites also have the advantage of direct access to the Signature Lounge without having to take an elevator, much like the Penthouse Suites on Royal class ships.

We chose a Penthouse Suite on Deck 17. We will be in 17620 on the April 27 sailing. We usually book a stateroom that has rooms above and below. When we selected 17620, we knew the Sanctuary was above us, but since we are early risers, we didn’t think early activity would bother us. We shall see! 
 

Murf

[TAXPROFF]

We are booked on the Star for a Penthouse Signature Suite for back-to-back next year.

Barcelona to Southampton and then Southampton to Fort Lauderdale.

We anticipate that the Signature experience on the Star will be very similar to the Sun.  Therefore we are very interested in comments on the food in the Signature Restaurant and the Signature experience in general.    We are experienced Princess cruisers, (40 cruises and over 400 nights) but we have never gone the Suite route before.   We have always been balcony cabins and have stayed away from mini suites in part because the bathtubs are small and we don't want to have to step over their edge to get into the shower.   We are a somewhat elderly couple 81 and 74.   This year we are on Enchanted for 34 nights from December 6 to January 9, 2025.  We were on her maiden cruise (900 passengers) and second cruise (1,300 passengers) and we love Take 5.

 

Thanks for carving out a Signature section.  To be honest if the Signature benefits do not appear to be worth the price we would consider cancelling and going back to straight balcony.   So we look forward to hearing more reports.

[happy cruzin]

On 3/6/2024 at 8:50 PM, Womble99 said:

Yes it is new, we had no issues having Lobster Benedict for breakfast on our cruise in January if we asked in advance and it certainly wasn't an upcharge item......

 

They are always looking for ways to wring another dollar from passengers it seems.

 

New to Princess - but I am surprised/disappointed to see the upcharge items on the Signature Suites Breakfast menu.  😔

[happy cruzin]

1 hour ago, happy cruzin said:

 

New to Princess - but I am surprised/disappointed to see the upcharge items on the Signature Suites Breakfast menu.  😔

Are there upcharged items on the dinner menu too??  What other Signature Suite upcharges should we expect, besides drinks outside our Plus Package?

[happy cruzin]

24 minutes ago, happy cruzin said:

Are there upcharged items on the dinner menu too??  What other Signature Suite upcharges should we expect, besides drinks outside our Plus Package?

Now that I look closely, there are charge items on the lunch menu too. Does anyone have photos of the Signature Suites dinner menu from the restaurant - not screenshots from the app??

[WonderMan3]

3 hours ago, happy cruzin said:

 

New to Princess - but I am surprised/disappointed to see the upcharge items on the Signature Suites Breakfast menu.  😔

Were these same items offered for free at the suites breakfast on other ships or just not offered at all?

[chamima]

On 3/6/2024 at 9:16 PM, jwattle said:

I'm gonna venture a guess that the menu shown was NOT the suite breakfast menu, or at least not the Specialty Menu, as it showed a charge for the mimosas, and we all know that the "happy juice" (mimosas) are complimentary with the suite brekkies. 🙂

 

 

Unfortunately I think I need to correct the sentence highlighted in red above to used to be complimentary.

😡

[jwattle]

3 hours ago, chamima said:

 

Unfortunately I think I need to correct the sentence highlighted in red above to used to be complimentary.

😡

well 💩

[Womble99]

3 hours ago, chamima said:

 

Unfortunately I think I need to correct the sentence highlighted in red above to used to be complimentary.

😡

Yes, I think this is the way of the future for Princess. Anyway to find a means to wring another $ from a passenger will be found and exploited where possible.

[chamima]

4 hours ago, chamima said:

 

Unfortunately I think I need to correct the sentence highlighted in red above to used to be complimentary.

😡

 

58 minutes ago, Womble99 said:

Yes, I think this is the way of the future for Princess. Anyway to find a means to wring another $ from a passenger will be found and exploited where possible.

 

 

 

I should also add that I think adding charges  to Suite passengers is a mistake for their long term interests. 
The profit margin on suites is higher than that for other cabins so they should be enhancing the benefits. 
When we saw there was a new suite dining room (like Luminae on Celebrity) we were excited. But now that we see it’s basically the same menu as the MDR with the same upcharges and not more upscale menus it’s not so exciting. 
When we saw there was a suite area of the Sanctuary we were excited but now we find out that that aren’t nearly enough loungers to accommodate even a fraction of suite passengers and only a small few of those are in the shade that many of us require. 

[capriccio]

24 minutes ago, chamima said:

When we saw there was a new suite dining room (like Luminae on Celebrity) we were excited. But now that we see it’s basically the same menu as the MDR with the same upcharges and not more upscale menus it’s not so exciting. 

I have limited experience in suites on other cruise lines, just 2 cruises in the Yacht Club on MSC ships.  The YC dining room has its own menus and its own kitchen and chef to prepare the food.  Is that how Luminae functions on Celebrity? 

 

I probably foolishly thought that since the Sun would have a dedicated suite dining room it would also have a dedicated kitchen.  I just looked at the deck plan (deck 7) and the Signature Dining Room and the Reserve Dining Room are separated by a large white area that seems to be the shared kitchen.  So much for having special menus since, in my mind, one or two extra dishes doesn't make it special not to mention that the kitchen will be feeding a much larger group of passengers than just those in suites. 

Edited March 20 by capriccio

[WonderMan3]

2 hours ago, capriccio said:

I have limited experience in suites on other cruise lines, just 2 cruises in the Yacht Club on MSC ships.  The YC dining room has its own menus and its own kitchen and chef to prepare the food.  Is that how Luminae functions on Celebrity? 

 

I probably foolishly thought that since the Sun would have a dedicated suite dining room it would also have a dedicated kitchen.  I just looked at the deck plan (deck 7) and the Signature Dining Room and the Reserve Dining Room are separated by a large white area that seems to be the shared kitchen.  So much for having special menus since, in my mind, one or two extra dishes doesn't make it special not to mention that the kitchen will be feeding a much larger group of passengers than just those in suites. 

The S and M class Celebrity ships have Luminae adjacent to the MDR so they share a kitchen, (although I think Luminae may get its own section). That's because Luminae was carved out of a section of the MDR to create it. It has a separate menu, although guests can order from the MDR menu as well. On the Edge class ships, Luminae is located some distance from the MDR so it has its own kitchen, and it has its own menu. Guests cannot order from the MDR menu on those ships.

[dides]

12 hours ago, happy cruzin said:

Now that I look closely, there are charge items on the lunch menu too. Does anyone have photos of the Signature Suites dinner menu from the restaurant - not screenshots from the app??

 

Here's a couple of the Signature dinner menus for you.  (Credits: Mitch M and Laila O V)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[WonderMan3]

So the Prime Rib trolley does exist? I thought someone in this forum had reported it was not happening on Sun?

[dides]

14 minutes ago, WonderMan3 said:

So the Prime Rib trolley does exist? I thought someone in this forum had reported it was not happening on Sun?

CanadianBurger said he didn't see it in the Reserve restaurant and the headwaiter didn't know what the latest was. Cruisedoctor said the manager of the Signature dining room mentioned the trolleys had yet to be delivered to the ship during the first cruise.  We need someone in a suite to confirm if it is  actually available now.

 

 

Edited March 20 by dides

[WonderMan3]

4 minutes ago, dides said:

CanadianBurger said he didn't see it in the Reserve restaurant and the headwaiter didn't know what the latest was. Cruisedoctor said the manager of the Signature dining room mentioned the trolleys had yet to be delivered to the ship during the first cruise.  

Okay. So it is coming. So many missing things on this ship. Nice to know they will be there eventually but so frustrating if you booked one of the early dates.

[lennythenose]

12 hours ago, WonderMan3 said:

So the Prime Rib trolley does exist? I thought someone in this forum had reported it was not happening on Sun?

I love prime rib and have been reading everything I can. It appears to me from what I’ve seen posted that the Signature menus have the “trolley” prime rib on the menu every night but it is coming from the kitchen, not a trolley yet. What cruisedoctor posted about the trolley not being delivered yet makes sense since it is in the menu description. 
 

I’ve also seen people ask about it in the Reserve dining room expecting it to be there also but I have not seen any menus with it listed in that one. I think that is part of what is causing the confusion for many. 

[BriSquared]

This is a very helpful thread, thank you!  From above, unless I am misreading, at least for now, the only difference between the Signature restaurant and the Reserve restaurant appears to be that they are served in different but close locations and the Signature restaurant may have a prime rib trolley.

Am I understating the differences?

Thanks again for all the input.

[Rolltide Cruisers]

We are on the August 17, 2024 seven day sailing from Athens to Barcelona.  We are in the Signature Suites and purchased the Premier Package.  Two Questions: Do you need to make dinner reservations for the Signature Restaurant.  Princess App shows no availability.  Believe I read no reservations necessary.  2nd Question: Supposed to get 2 Speciality Restaurants free, but credit card has been charged a "cover fee."  Can anyone explain? Thanks 

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

1 hour ago, Rolltide Cruisers said:

We are on the August 17, 2024 seven day sailing from Athens to Barcelona.  We are in the Signature Suites and purchased the Premier Package.  Two Questions: Do you need to make dinner reservations for the Signature Restaurant.  Princess App shows no availability.  Believe I read no reservations necessary.  2nd Question: Supposed to get 2 Speciality Restaurants free, but credit card has been charged a "cover fee."  Can anyone explain? Thanks 

They do not take reservations for the Signature Restaurant.  You show up and most likely get a seat.  We arrived at 8pm every night and the restaurant was not even half full.

 

I would recommend not sitting all the way in the back.  The lighting there is too high and you feel like you are in a spotlight.  If they try to sit you there, just ask for another table.  We loved the waitress there but couldn't do the lighting.  I think she thought we didn't like her after the first day so we asked if we could sit somewhere else but still have her serve us if she wasn't busy. They were able to juggle all the staff to give us outstanding service every night.

(We only do plus so I can't answer the other question.)

Edited Tuesday at 07:19 PM by Sox Fan Cruiser

[Rolltide Cruisers]

Thank you Boston Strong.  Good to know.  My husband has a detached retina and is very sensitive to lighting. 

[jwattle]

1 minute ago, Rolltide Cruisers said:

Thank you Boston Strong.  Good to know.  My husband has a detached retina and is very sensitive to lighting. 

The app is glitchy, so it will sometimes charge for the specialty restaurants even if they're supposed to be comped; save your c/c statement and a screenprint where the app charged you and have the suite concierge give you onboard credit when you're onboard. 🙂

 

[Rolltide Cruisers]

6 minutes ago, jwattle said:

The app is glitchy, so it will sometimes charge for the specialty restaurants even if they're supposed to be comped; save your c/c statement and a screenprint where the app charged you and have the suite concierge give you onboard credit when you're onboard. 🙂

 

Thanks.  Appreciate that.  Having a lot of glitches with the app.  Excursions will not pull up.  Did online chat with Princess.  They are aware of it and said try tomorrow. 😂