New to Princess

[woneill63]

I have taken three cruises in the past, all with Royal Caribbean on the Mariner OTS. I am sailing to Alaska this summer on the Sun Princess. What can I expect ?

[Sandytoes]

A Great Time.

 

:D

[Plant]

I agree with Sandytoes! We haven't cruised the Sun to Alaska, but our favorite cruise was on the Sun in the Caribbean. It's a "smaller" ship, but with all the amenities of a larger ship. The crew were happy! To us, if the crew enjoys the ship, we will too.

 

I hope you'll come back and tell us all about your cruise since we're looking at booking it for next year.

[bdjam]

Depends on the type of cruise you're looking for. Sun Princess is an understated, smaller ship. If you're looking for flow-riders, rock climbing walls or even MUTS, you won't find it on Sun Princess. Many people say that RCI and Princess offer the same product, but in reality they don't. Sun Princess doesn't have huge atria, huge dining halls, etc.

But if you're looking for a more understated experience than you might find on RCI, you're in the right place.

[Times Prince]

I have taken three cruises in the past, all with Royal Caribbean on the Mariner OTS. I am sailing to Alaska this summer on the Sun Princess. What can I expect ?

The Sun Princess is a great sized ship, with all the amenities, including full size theater, aft show lounge, shops, pools, spa, table tennis, and a variety of dining experiences. She can comfortably house about 1260 passengers, and always has a great crew and staff with a mix of nationalities, including many Europeans.

 

I particularly like the fact that all outside cabins are private - if you happen to have a balcony cabin there are no worries about people above looking down into your balcony. I think you will really enjoy the Alaska experience on the ship - she was built for passenger viewing from multiple decks towards the bow and every outside viewing point gives a good view. Be sure to check out the view from Deck 7 when cruising the glaciers.

 

The Sun Princess will give you a great Princess experience with a (now) moderate size ship. She has almost all the amenities of the larger ships (except for MUTS).

 

Have a great cruise!

[woneill63]

Thank you everyone for the input, I know that the Sun is a smaller, and older, ship, but that's fine. I am going with a large family group and everyone is very excited to be sailing to Alaska. I have heard only good things about Princess. What, in the world, is MUTS ?

[tawcat]

Thank you everyone for the input, I know that the Sun is a smaller, and older, ship, but that's fine. I am going with a large family group and everyone is very excited to be sailing to Alaska. I have heard only good things about Princess. What, in the world, is MUTS ?

 

 

as you can see we have sailed a good bit. i would suspect mariner of the seas is about the same size ship as the sun. i'd also say princess is at one, if not two, steps up from RCCL. you'll enjoy everything about her.

 

MUTS=movies under the stars. i believe some on princess' newer ships offers this. going to alaska ( was stattioned there for 2.5 years) i doubt you would want to be sitting out on deck for the two hours to watch a movie. of course if you had a heated balnket you'd be fine;)

 

enjoy your cruise, you're gonna love it!

[woneill63]

The Mariner of the Seas is roughly twice the size of the Sun Princess, so it won't have all the bell and whistles. That is all right, though, we got a great deal on our balcony cabin and I want to give Princess a try. When we get back, I will write a quick review.

[tawcat]

i stand corrected, the MOS has a pax of 3,114, whereas the SP has a mere 1,950. not to fret, you'll find the SP just as comforting as the MOS. and don't sell Princess short, the brass and glass is just as overwhelming. we just recently got the Dawn and i thought it was as nice as any ship we've been on.

 

enjoy enjoy enjoy.

[wollenkv]

Don't forget that cruises to Alaska and the Caribbean are different. So some of the differences you may experience are due to the destination and not the cruise line.

[Desert Cruizers]

My DH & I took the Sun Princess on the 17 Day Panama April 27, 2006 out of Ft Lauderdale and were surprised by her beauty for an older ship. She was 10 at the time. I have to admit, her balcony rooms were very small, 179 sq ft total. I should have stayed with the Twin Bed set up. At any rate, we had a wonderful cruise, the crew were fabulous as well as the food. Princess & RCCL Fan

[traveling1969]

I think that you'll find the Sun to have a more subdued, intimate feel to it than the Voyager-class Mariner. Specifically, the dining rooms on the Sun will feel a bit claustrophobic after the soaring open spaces of the Mariner but they will grow on you. That said, I have always enjoyed the Royal Promenade (especially the pints I've enjoyed while sitting at the pub people watching). The croissant sandwiches at the promenade cafe are to die for. We've sailed the Sun once and the Dawn (sister ship) once and enjoy their more cozy ambience. The wheelhouse bar is a favorite as is their excellent pizza restaurant, Verdi's. Both ships have their good and bad points depending on your point of view but both make for excellent cruising venues. Bon Voyage!

[woneill63]

Since I have only taken 3 cruises so far, and all on the same ship, I dont have anything to compare my cruises with. To me, cruises are the best vacation money can buy. I am looking forward to cruising with Princess, especially the Alaskan voyage. I know that cruising Alaska will be very different than cruising the Caribbean, but I hear that Princess does a great job in Alaska voyages and I would like to give them a try. I just wish that I would have started on cruises sooner.

[GoodAsGold]

I sailed for 10 days on the Sun in 2003 and enjoyed her a lot. Our cruise was to Mexico, though. In 2005 twenty one family members sailed to Alaska and I would have preferred the Sun Princess over the Norwegian Star which we were on. Even though the Sun is smaller, I found her more to my liking. Be sure and go to the Wheelhouse Bar at night! They play lots of oldies and songs with lyrics you can actually understand! :p They have themes such as '50s sock hop night, etc. Also, the Horizon Court buffet is positioned up front, so you'll have a nice view of Alaska out the large picture windows. Have fun! And, welcome to Princess!

 

 

Thank you everyone for the input, I know that the Sun is a smaller, and older, ship, but that's fine. I am going with a large family group and everyone is very excited to be sailing to Alaska. I have heard only good things about Princess. What, in the world, is MUTS ?

[GoodAsGold]

And, after you've tried the Sun to Alaska, you might want to give one of the Princess Grand class ships in warmer weather. I've sailed on the Star Princess and Golden Princess and even though they're similar to the Sun class ships in many ways (decor), I really enjoyed the Grand class pools! As well as having heated, FRESH water (as most of Princess pools are), there is one pool that has a retractable ceiling so you can swim in all types of weather. They call it The Conservatory. RCI has similar pools, but for adults. Also, I really like the surrounding decor in the Grand class pool areas. Gorgeous, mosaic tiles and an appealing low, curved "wall" around the pool. The warm water overflows all over the immediate deck, so you can dip your tootsies or even lie in it if you want. Wonderful! :p

 

 

Since I have only taken 3 cruises so far, and all on the same ship, I dont have anything to compare my cruises with. To me, cruises are the best vacation money can buy. I am looking forward to cruising with Princess, especially the Alaskan voyage. I know that cruising Alaska will be very different than cruising the Caribbean, but I hear that Princess does a great job in Alaska voyages and I would like to give them a try. I just wish that I would have started on cruises sooner.

[JKC3]

We were on the Sun last year in the Caribbean, and we enjoyed it. Yes, it's a bit older and smaller, but that's not a bad thing. Still same good Princess service, and we liked the captain (Andrew Froude - kind of quiet, but very approachable).

 

Alaska is an awesome place to go. We were there in 2003 on the Coral Princess. We did a land/cruise tour so we saw Fairbanks, Denali, and Copper River. Absolutely breathtaking and worth the train, ferry and bus rides we took to get around.

 

If you're only doing a cruise, that's okay too. You'll probably see College Fjords and Glacier Bay (the National Park service sends a ranger or two onboard to tell you what you're seeing). We stopped in Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan for ports.

 

In Skagway we walked around town in the morning, then took a helicopter ride to a glacier - that was VERY cool. In Juneau it was grey and misty, but we took a whale watching tour and saw humpback whales and killer whales and bald eagles. That was VERY neat! In Ketchikan it rained, but we were prepared with rain gear - so we watched the lumberjack show, walked around town, took the funicular up to the top of the town for a good view, had lunch, etc. A nice visit. We ended in Vancouver - a beautiful city. Stay an extra day if you can. We went to Stanley Park, the aquarium, and walked along the harbor.

 

We loved it so much - we're already planning a return to Alaska in 2009 :)

 

Enjoy!

Jennifer

[gipper77]

We just returned from the Sun on Sunday, May 13 - May 20, we had a great time and the food was very good. One thing is that the showers are bigger. We had been on her a few years back and she still looks good. I know that you will enjoy her.:)