Park 19 on the Sun Princess

[Iamcruzin]

17 minutes ago, FamilyAtSea.travel said:

Not to mention the high status gamblers on Celebrity that are upset they removed the drink package from the benefits. 

 

Celebrity saw the outrage and rolled that back a little (for any sailings fully paid for by August 1st), but people are still extremely upset. 

 

A bunch say they'll be going to Princess but I think once they sit in a smoke-filles casino, they'll be back to Celebrity.

I don't recall that one but I do remember when they removed the foot stools from Concierge class and the unlimited water from Aqua Class. When they started to charge for fresh orange juice it sent Elites into a tail spin. 

[FamilyAtSea.travel]

1 minute ago, Iamcruzin said:

I don't recall that one but I do remember when they removed the foot stools from Concierge class and the unlimited water from Aqua Class. When they started to charge for fresh orange juice it sent Elites into a tail spin. 

This was a brand new change in the past week so it's still fresh for the people impacted. 

[vjmatty]

1 hour ago, TRLD said:

So basically your view is thst the rules do not matter and that you will ignore them if they let you get away with it.

Read it again.  She wants the areas to actually be adult only but without having to pay for the sanctuary. 

[TRLD]

46 minutes ago, IndyKid said:

I think you and @Esprit are misunderstanding where I'm coming from. I want those areas to be child-free, I want the rules enforced, see my earlier posts on this matter. 

 

What I was saying is that, due to lack of enforcement by Princess personnel, these areas are not always adults-only.

sorry confused you with Colsky

[JimmyVWine]

1 hour ago, FamilyAtSea.travel said:

We are sailing in the Sanctuary on the Sun Princess over Thanksgiving and each of our two kids were an additional $2,500 ($5k combined, total cost of $20,400 for a 7-day sailing).

 

Other cruise lines do Kids Sail Free, but Princess isn't as liberal with those promotions.

I don't agree.  Princess has had "Guests 3 and 4 Sail For Free" activated for more time than it hasn't since the restart.  It is only the slivers of time between sales where they don't.  And while it is true that they never sail for free in Suites (including Sanctuary Suites) the cost is still less than a full adult fare.  Using your numbers above, if the total cost for the 7 day sailing is $20,400 and the kids are $5,000 of that ($2,500 each), then the adults are $15,400 of the cost, or $7,700 each.  So each child is less than one-third the price of an adult. 

Edited July 23 by JimmyVWine

[JimmyVWine]

3 hours ago, Iamcruzin said:

Are you kidding?

I think you missed the nature of my point, or perhaps I should have added an extra word or two.  I didn't mean that Princess does not make changes prospectively. I meant that it is darn near impossible to implement those changes prospectively in an equitable manner.  If Princess wants to change Alfredo's from being "included" to being a "extra charge" venue, it either has to announce the change two years in advance so as not to affect anyone who has already booked a cruise, or it has to make the change at it's whim and in so doing, ruffle the feathers of people who already booked.  Announcing a change two years in advance is simply not feasible, so we are stuck with the "change at their whim" option.  As I noted earlier, the only fair way to implement the latter is to give at least 90 days notice so that everyone affected can adjust accordingly.  In certain instances, significant changes have been announced, but not implemented until after a period of time.  Think: the sunsetting of the gool ol' coffee cards.  People had a grace period to use them up.  Other changes, as you noted, were sprung on people without a grace period.  It's rather unconscionable to do that, but they do.   

Edited July 23 by JimmyVWine

[FamilyAtSea.travel]

14 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

I don't agree.  Princess has had "Guests 3 and 4 Sail For Free" activated for more time than it hasn't since the restart.  It is only the slivers of time between sales where they don't.  And while it is true that they never sail for free in Suites (including Sanctuary Suites) the cost is still less than a full adult fare.  Using your numbers above, if the total cost for the 7 day sailing is $20,400 and the kids are $5,000 of that ($2,500 each), then the adults are $15,400 of the cost, or $7,700 each.  So each child is less than one-third the price of an adult. 

I'll defer to you on this one since you seem to know more about it than me. 

 

I don't think $2,500/person should be viewed as a discounted rate though since they're also receiving diminished amenities (can't use the Sanctuary or any other adults-only areas, whatever those may be + no alcohol + the cabin is already covered by the first two)... But I understand what you're saying and the math is the math if you don't consider what they're not receiving that the first two guests are.

[Thrak]

3 hours ago, Its the journey said:

Lol, wait until the gamblers realize the new sphere class doesn't even have a bar in the casino!!!  

 

We sailed on Discovery Princess in April and there was no bar in the casino on that ship at that time.

[Kit6]

So we went into the 16+ area at the front of the ship, it is indeed 16+, no charge. They were very nice about it, but did confirm the age restriction. You can go into the dome but not the front part or into that pool (only a small part of the pool is before the dividing wall/doors). We enjoyed a show in the dome as a family, all are welcome there. It’s just the front half of that area including pool that is 16+. Not a big deal for us at all, lots of pools & seating outside that area, but some may not like that. 

[Kit6]

Alfredo’s & O’Malleys are both included in the plus package, 2 meals per sailing. 

[Kit6]

I get what sone of you are saying about rewarding loyalty however, on the other side - I think it is nice to make things open & accessible for all too. Many can’t afford a yearly luxury cruise, some want to try different cruises or vacations, not fair to be “punished” for that. I see both sides, nice to have some perks too for those that continue to give their money to one cruise line. 

[Thrak]

4 hours ago, Kit6 said:

I get what sone of you are saying about rewarding loyalty however, on the other side - I think it is nice to make things open & accessible for all too. Many can’t afford a yearly luxury cruise, some want to try different cruises or vacations, not fair to be “punished” for that. I see both sides, nice to have some perks too for those that continue to give their money to one cruise line. 

 

Punished... You mean like the airlines do when they give perks to frequent flyers? Many types of businesses give extra perks for loyalty. I don't see that as "punishing" anybody. It's supposed to be "rewarding" some folks. I can't afford to fly first class nor can I afford to fly frequently and book luxury hotels. I don't feel I'm being "punished" because I can't just slip on into a nice airport lounge. I haven't earned the privilege. Likewise I'm not being "punished" because I don't get the military OBC. I haven't earned that privilege. Too many people want everything to be "fair" these days. Perhaps we should all get a trophy for sailing.

[cruisingpeople]

21 hours ago, Thrak said:

 

We sailed on Discovery Princess in April and there was no bar in the casino on that ship at that time.

 

I was with you on that sailing. Granted, there was no bar, however, there were servers going around taking drink orders. For me, it was never more than 5 minutes between the time I ordered and when the drink was delivered.   YMMV

[Thrak]

50 minutes ago, cruisingpeople said:

 

I was with you on that sailing. Granted, there was no bar, however, there were servers going around taking drink orders. For me, it was never more than 5 minutes between the time I ordered and when the drink was delivered.   YMMV

 

Yes, they got the drinks next door at Take Five. Sadly, they have now trashed Take Five by removing the band area and adding slot machines. It's now a smoke-free slot machine area with the bar. I'm disgusted and disappointed.

[555]

I'm a little surprised that Princess hasn't offered some small compensation for those people who booked prior to the announcement about Park 19 being scrapped. For some folks with children it might haven been a deciding factor in choosing that ship. 

[Pixelskaya]

2 minutes ago, 555 said:

I'm a little surprised that Princess hasn't offered some small compensation for those people who booked prior to the announcement about Park 19 being scrapped. For some folks with children it might haven been a deciding factor in choosing that ship. 

Careful; I once said Park 19 was one of the reasons we chose the Sun Princess and somebody was so salty about that they had to delete his/her answer.

And btw I agree that some sort of compensation should be in order.

[colsky]

10 minutes ago, 555 said:

I'm a little surprised that Princess hasn't offered some small compensation for those people who booked prior to the announcement about Park 19 being scrapped. For some folks with children it might haven been a deciding factor in choosing that ship. 

I agree about the compensation, but I don't think there's been an actual announcement or anything formal from Princess relayed to passengers yet!

[vjmatty]

25 minutes ago, Pixelskaya said:

Careful; I once said Park 19 was one of the reasons we chose the Sun Princess and somebody was so salty about that they had to delete his/her answer.

And btw I agree that some sort of compensation should be in order.

Yes, we’re a tough crowd unfortunately, which is kind of bizarre for a website dedicated to a happy vacation topic. Don’t let the salty ones get you down, some people just need to unclench. 

[Kit6]

21 hours ago, Thrak said:

 

Punished... You mean like the airlines do when they give perks to frequent flyers? Many types of businesses give extra perks for loyalty. I don't see that as "punishing" anybody. It's supposed to be "rewarding" some folks. I can't afford to fly first class nor can I afford to fly frequently and book luxury hotels. I don't feel I'm being "punished" because I can't just slip on into a nice airport lounge. I haven't earned the privilege. Likewise I'm not being "punished" because I don't get the military OBC. I haven't earned that privilege. Too many people want everything to be "fair" these days. Perhaps we should all get a trophy for sailing.

I see both sides, just trying to acknowledge both. Not meant to offend, I understand that these programs are very important to some. I put “punished” in quotations meant to indicate it was a little off/not the best word. Not used to how offended people get by little posts or an opinion different from their own, I’m not on any social media, jumped on here just for “fun” 😜. I’m really completely fine with loyalty perks, special sections for those who pay extra for suites, etc. Makes sense to have the different options, just wanted to say that I also understand that some families who may save up to do one of these cruises in their lifetimes also might enjoy those areas & is also be okay with supporting that. 

[Esprit]

Well, my Sun cruise starting 10th August has been completely ruined with the closure of Park 19.

I was going to spend at least an hour of my cruise on the glide roller. Perhaps more if I thought it annoyed those luxuriating in the Sanctuary below. Now what am I going to do instead?

I'll use it going to customer services and demand compensation! 😉 

[vjmatty]

8 hours ago, Esprit said:

Well, my Sun cruise starting 10th August has been completely ruined with the closure of Park 19.

I was going to spend at least an hour of my cruise on the glide roller. Perhaps more if I thought it annoyed those luxuriating in the Sanctuary below. Now what am I going to do instead?

I'll use it going to customer services and demand compensation! 😉 

You could go up to the Park 19 deck and just be there. That’s often enough to annoy some people. 

[Retired-N-Happy]

On 7/22/2024 at 9:14 AM, IndyKid said:

Part of the attraction of Princess for the wife and I was the fact that they were not Carnival and RCL. Their ships were not huge, floating amusement parks, and they didn't cater to families with young children. Princess needs to take this as a sign and go back to their roots.

There are currently 15 ships in the Princess fleet that don't cater to families at all.  The powers that be decided to make the two Sphere Class ships more family friendly in order to attract more multigenerational cruisers.  

Carnival always goes after the blue cards, which are first time cruisers.  Without new blood, cruise lines remain stagnant.  Just because the manufacturer of the Park 19 area dropped the ball and things did not turn out as expected, Princess should not and will not change their course.  Something else will be constructed in the Park 19 area and something totally different could possibly be planned for the same area on the upcoming Star Princess.  

[Retired-N-Happy]

On 7/22/2024 at 9:27 AM, FLAlaska said:

Im not bothered by not having Park 19. Truth be told, I didn't like the idea.  However, that said,  its just another fail in a long list of deploying this ship. From delays in starting, to original booking, to changing booking structure and upsetting people , to delayed restaurants, shows, etc.  Its like they are just winging it. They need to get their act together.

Nobody is twisting your arm to sail on the Sun.  You have 15 other ships in the fleet that "has their act together".  Obviously Princess has had growing pains with this new class of ship and the problems should be ironed out when the Star comes out next year.

[FamilyAtSea.travel]

7 minutes ago, Retired-N-Happy said:

There are currently 15 ships in the Princess fleet that don't cater to families at all.  The powers that be decided to make the two Sphere Class ships more family friendly in order to attract more multigenerational cruisers.  

Carnival always goes after the blue cards, which are first time cruisers.  Without new blood, cruise lines remain stagnant.  Just because the manufacturer of the Park 19 area dropped the ball and things did not turn out as expected, Princess should not and will not change their course.  Something else will be constructed in the Park 19 area and something totally different could possibly be planned for the same area on the upcoming Star Princess.  

I'm curious to see if we see anything constructed in that space before it does it's TA cruise to the Caribbean. 

 

We don't sail on the Sun until Thanksgiving so I'd love to see them make use of the space before we're on there with our kids. 

[Retired-N-Happy]

On 7/22/2024 at 5:52 PM, Its the journey said:

Herein lies the rub, for Princess loyalists ( and I consider myself one).  

 

Previously the sanctuary was a much loved and appreciated loyalty perk.  Yes, being elite wouldn't guarantee you a spot, but it helped quite a bit and being able to get a place in the sanctuary definitely inspired me to chase loyalty levels with Princess.

 

If they take that away, they offer very little loyalty rewards that anyone will chase.

 

And if they want to compete with Royal, Royal will be a tough one to take on.  Great loyalty perks, I have many friends who are completely "loyal to royal" just to earn another free drink.

 

This is a real issue to me they are taking away something very attractive that was tied to loyalty and making it just about money.  Will this impact loyalty? 

 

People on their first cruise will no longer be plotting how to obtain  Elite to have a better shot at the sanctuary.  

 

Will they care less about loyalty to Princess?  After all why chase perks when they are easily taken away.

 

Or can be purchased, no loyalty required 

Not everyone wants to be in the sanctuary and it takes awhile to earn Elite status just so that you can be in the first group to pay extra money to get sanctuary access 

Another option on a different line is the Vibe Beach Club on NCL.  It used to be a free for all to gain access on embarkation day and was literally a run race to determine who can get in line first for about 100 passes.  The passes were good for the entire week.  

Post Covid, you can now buy the passes ahead of time.  They run about 249 pp for all 7 full days.