Sapphire Princess to Hawaii March 26-April 8 Review

Below is a draft of a review I just submitted. Let me know if you have any questions.

My wife chose this cruise to celebrate our 30th anniversary. Our main goal was to relax and mission accomplished. The cruise was everything we had hoped for and more and even after 14 days we were not ready to get off the ship. What follows is a summary of what we did, our thoughts, suggestions, and other general comments.

Embarkation

We flew in to LAX at 9:30 am the day of the cruise and were greeted by several Princess employees at the airport for our prepaid transfers to the terminal. Our baggage was quickly and efficiently loaded and we were on the bus in a reasonable amount of time. Because of our early arrival and because they did not want us to have to wait at the airport or the terminal they reserved space at the Airport Sheraton hotel were they dropped us off, fed us continental breakfast and completed the check in process. When it was time to go to the terminal we got back on the busses, quickly got our pre processed ship cards upon entering the terminal, and proceeded to walk on the ship. I can’t imagine the process going any smoother.

Cabin

We had only had inside cabins on our previous cruises. We were going to go with a balcony given the number of sea days but given the relatively small price difference for a mini suite we went with a mini suite. We could not have been happier with our choice. Given the extra sea days it was nice to have the extra space. We were near the front of the ship which may have made some of the rough seas we faced seem a little rougher but it was nothing we could not handle. The condition of the room was fantastic, everything worked, and our room attendant Romeo could not have been more helpful.

Condition of the Ship

I understand the ship is going in for updating in the not to distant future. I can’t see why because I saw nothing on the ship that needed updating. The condition of the ship was fantastic.

On Board Activities/Entertainment

We were there to relax so we did not work very hard at going to scheduled activities. We did purchase the thermal pass ($90 each) and made that part of our daily routine. We thought that was an excellent investment as we used it 12 of the 14 days of the cruise.

We used the gym on about half the days and after the first few days did not have any trouble waiting to use any of the equipment.

We only used the Lotus pool. We liked the fact it was a little more secluded and never had very many people using it.

On the last sea day we took the ultimate ships tour. On the surface it is pricy ($150 each) but we thought it was well worth it. It lasted about 3 ½ hours and was very interesting. There were about 12 people on the tour we got to see the laundry facilities, the photo and printing facilities, back stage and dressing rooms of the Princess theater, the kitchen, the medical facilities, the anchor room, saw the crew living area, the food storage areas, and the bridge. At each of the locations the senior officer responsible for that area (or in the case of the back stage area a couple of the dancers) talked to us. In addition to the tour we both got nice bath robes, chef’s jackets, several photos with the captain and many of the other presenters on the tour, champagne, drinks, and deserts. I don’t know if I would do this every time but everyone should do this at least once.

We did not make it to all the shows but we did see the following:

Singer/comedian Steve Morris. He was great. Don’t think we have enjoyed a cruise ship entertainer more.

Rock and Roll Juggler Mike Price. Very enjoyable show worth seeing.

Ventriloquist Dan Horn. Very enjoyable as well.

Vocal impressionist Sean O’ Shea. He was OK.

Comedian Derrick Cameron. He was OK

The Production Show “I Got the Music”. It is what it is. These production shows always seem like a bad episode of “Glee”. We did not see any of the other production shows.

Unless you want to sit through an hour of trivia or some other game beforehand it is impossible to get a seat in the explorers lounge for any show. Very few people leave after the trivia is over with. This is a bit of a pain.

Went to the Cruise Critic Meet and Greet the first full day of the cruise. Enjoyed meeting everyone but was a bit disappointed no one from the ship showed up. One of the folks organized a slot pull after the meet and greet where everyone contributed $10 and everyone took a turn and then everyone split the winnings. It was a lot of fun. We ended up making nearly 200% on our investment.

Dining/Drinking

We had anytime dining. The first couple of nights we tried eating at 7:15 in Pacific Moon and Santa Fe and had to wait about 15 minutes to get a seat. On the third night we went to dinner about 7:45 in Vivaldi, had no wait all, and thoroughly enjoyed the service we received from our waiters Jose and Victoria. After that we had the same table assigned to us in Vivaldi and had dinner between 7:45 and 8:15 without a wait. The quality of the food exceeded our expectations. We found the flexibility of anytime dining, not being hurried because of the low demand for later dining, and the advantage of getting to know our wait staff to be the perfect solution for us.

We had one traditional breakfast and lunch. The food and service were great but we were spending so much time in the Spa that we ended up doing most lunch and breakfasts up in the buffet. The food in the buffet was very good but the small size of the serving area and seating area made it an overall unpleasant experience.

The mass production coffee is undrinkable. One of our best investments was getting the coffee card so we could have unlimited fresh brewed coffee from the coffee bar.

We ordered the three wine box the first night of the cruise because given the single bottle prices of the wine it was a good deal. We found the wines to be good but not good enough to justify the high cost. After we finished that wine we just ordered some of the less expensive wines that were just fine.

We had pizza a couple of days and it was very good. There is an omelet station but unlike other cruise ships the omelet station does not include many other side dishes and you can not get any meats in your omelet.

We went to the afternoon tea on a couple of occasions. It was very well done, the scones were excellent, and was very enjoyable.

Ports/Excursions

Hilo. Went on an independent tour put on by Ricky’s Tours. Saw Volcano national park, Rainbow falls and several other sights. Well worth it and would recommend it.

Honolulu. Did the ships tour of the Arizona Memorial and City Drive. Well worth it and would recommend it. In the evening we went to the House Without a Key at the Hotel Holekulani for an evening of Hawaiian music and hula dancing by a former miss Hawaii. With Diamondhead to our left and the sun setting to our right along with the singing and dancing made it a very pleasurable evening.

Kauai. Had a private tour guide Karen Tilley who runs Eden Tours. Not inexpensive, but a great value. We went to a farmers market, saw some remote beaches, and other behind the scenes areas. Saw things we would not see without local knowledge. She provided a great lunch, water and snacks and will be sending us a CD with photos she took of our day together. A great day, would highly recommend her to anyone.

Maui. Used the morning to go to the beach and booked an independent whale watching tour in the afternoon. The beach is a $2.00 round trip from on a bus you pick up from a bus stop just behind the shopping center across the street from where the tenders drop you off. Had booked and gotten a confirmation though Extreme Adventures Maui with Scotch Mist Sailing Charters for our whale watching trip. When we got there Scotch Mist had no record of our reservation and told us not to worry because there is a lot of other things to do in Hawaii. They did issue a refund and referred us to Pacific Whale Foundation where we had a fantastic whale watching experience. I would avoid Extreme Adventures because the obviously have some issues in communicating with the tour operators and was a bit troubled by Scotch Mist’s lack of empathy but would highly recommend the Pacific Whale Foundation tour.

Maui was the only port where we tendered and I was not looking forward to it. As it turns out there was little difference then in the ports where the ship was docked. It was fast and easy to get on and off. They seem to have figured out the process.

Other

My wife and I are in our mid 50’s and we were younger then about 70% of the people on the cruise. We enjoyed not having to fight kids and teens to use hot tubs and other facilities. I hope we are able to cruise into our 80’s and beyond like many of our shipmates.

I understand how difficult it to provide internet service on a cruise ship and I do not expect it to be free or inexpensive. That said if you do charge a kings ransom for internet service it is not unreasonable for the person footing the bill to expect it to work. The service on the ship is horrendous and not worth what you have to pay. I calculated it out it cost me nearly $12 in internet time just to print our return boarding pass.

Disembarking was very well organized. Our transfers got us back to LAX quickly and we had no issues with our bags.

Every time I asked the staff for something or brought up a minor issue the staff could have been more helpful and engaged. There is no one on the ship that did not provide great service. I was impressed.

Summery

A great experience, I came home relaxed, I would recommend this to anyone. It was the fastest and most relaxing 14 days I can remember.

Thanks for taking the time to write this review. It was interesting and to the point. Gloria

Thank your for your review, you did a great job. I will be sailing on the Golden Princess on 11.23.2011 to Hawaii. You did help we what to book on the different island. This will be my 10th cruise on Princess and 2nd time on Golden, but the first time to Hawaii.

If you would happen to have any more info that would be great.

are you planning on posting pictures?

Glad to hear that you had a great relaxing cruise.

Mike

Thank your for your review, you did a great job. I will be sailing on the Golden Princess on 11.23.2011 to Hawaii. You did help we what to book on the different island. This will be my 10th cruise on Princess and 2nd time on Golden, but the first time to Hawaii.

 

If you would happen to have any more info that would be great.

are you planning on posting pictures?

 

Glad to hear that you had a great relaxing cruise.

 

Mike

Here you go

Thanks for taking the time to share your experience. This cruise is high on my list and I love the Sapphire Princess.

You hinted that the seas were rough. How was that and what was the average temperature when you sailed across the Pacific? I sailed across once several years ago and it was very smooth, but I understand I likely had an odd experience with that.

Thanks for taking the time to share your experience. This cruise is high on my list and I love the Sapphire Princess.

 

You hinted that the seas were rough. How was that and what was the average temperature when you sailed across the Pacific? I sailed across once several years ago and it was very smooth, but I understand I likely had an odd experience with that.

The fist day our of LA and the second and third days after leaving Maui were pretty rough. The most comfortable days weather wise were the last two sea days before arriving in Hawaii and all of the days in port. The other days were a bit brisk.

The fist day our of LA and the second and third days after leaving Maui were pretty rough. The most comfortable days weather wise were the last two sea days before arriving in Hawaii and all of the days in port. The other days were a bit brisk.

Thanks. When I cruised Hawaii our roughest seas where around the islands and the crossing was smooth, so I was curious. Sounds like you had a great time.

I enjoyed your review very much and the pictures too.

We disembarked the Sapphire on 3/26, the day you got on, and we had

rough seas on the northbound from Cabo to San Pedro. 41 hours of

rough seas, 7 to 12 feet, not the worst, but definite movement to be sure.

We are going on the Hawaii cruise next year out of San Francisco.

How did you locate your guide for Kauai? Approx. how much would I

have to pay for her services for a tour which goes to Hanalei, Ha'ena,

Kalalau trail?

Thanks

Thanks for the great review! Looking forward to going on this cruise in October:) Relaxation is our primary goal also and you've given me some

great ideas as to what to do. The pictures are great! :D

Did you happen to notice if the MDR was open for lunch on embarkation day?

I enjoyed your review very much and the pictures too.

We disembarked the Sapphire on 3/26, the day you got on, and we had

rough seas on the northbound from Cabo to San Pedro. 41 hours of

rough seas, 7 to 12 feet, not the worst, but definite movement to be sure.

 

We are going on the Hawaii cruise next year out of San Francisco.

How did you locate your guide for Kauai? Approx. how much would I

have to pay for her services for a tour which goes to Hanalei, Ha'ena,

Kalalau trail?

 

Thanks

Not sure how much you have to pay you can get get her email from her web site.

Did you happen to notice if the MDR was open for lunch on embarkation day?

Sorry I do not know. We were told if we wanted lunch to go to the buffet but I did not ask if the MDR was open.

I enjoyed your review very much and the pictures too.

We disembarked the Sapphire on 3/26, the day you got on, and we had

rough seas on the northbound from Cabo to San Pedro. 41 hours of

rough seas, 7 to 12 feet, not the worst, but definite movement to be sure.

 

We are going on the Hawaii cruise next year out of San Francisco.

How did you locate your guide for Kauai? Approx. how much would I

have to pay for her services for a tour which goes to Hanalei, Ha'ena,

Kalalau trail?

 

Thanks

Click on this for a link to her web site

Thanks for the great review. We are looking forward to our Hawaii cruise on the Golden!

Thanks so much for the great review and pictures/slideshow! I am planning to take this same Princess itinerary on either the Golden or Sapphire in 2013. Can't decide which ship yet, but I will be on the Sapphire to Alaska this September. It sure looks like you all had a great time! I don't think it will really matter which ship we select, just can't wait to go!

Thanks again for your review!

Here you go

I was wondering if you happen to have any photos of your evening at "the house without a key".

We are going on this cruise this fall or winter and are looking for an evening in Honlulu such as you have experienced. You make it sound great.

Enjoyed the review. We also did the UST on the Sapphire 2 years ago and will be on her again in May for the wine cruise.:D

Also did the Golden last April to Hawaii. lots of sea days.

I was wondering if you happen to have any photos of your evening at "the house without a key".

 

We are going on this cruise this fall or winter and are looking for an evening in Honlulu such as you have experienced. You make it sound great.

Look at the Hono tab on the slide show.

Below is a draft of a review I just submitted. Let me know if you have any questions.

 

My wife chose this cruise to celebrate our 30th anniversary. Our main goal was to relax and mission accomplished. The cruise was everything we had hoped for and more and even after 14 days we were not ready to get off the ship. What follows is a summary of what we did, our thoughts, suggestions, and other general comments.

 

Embarkation

 

We flew in to LAX at 9:30 am the day of the cruise and were greeted by several Princess employees at the airport for our prepaid transfers to the terminal. Our baggage was quickly and efficiently loaded and we were on the bus in a reasonable amount of time. Because of our early arrival and because they did not want us to have to wait at the airport or the terminal they reserved space at the Airport Sheraton hotel were they dropped us off, fed us continental breakfast and completed the check in process. When it was time to go to the terminal we got back on the busses, quickly got our pre processed ship cards upon entering the terminal, and proceeded to walk on the ship. I can’t imagine the process going any smoother.

 

Cabin

 

We had only had inside cabins on our previous cruises. We were going to go with a balcony given the number of sea days but given the relatively small price difference for a mini suite we went with a mini suite. We could not have been happier with our choice. Given the extra sea days it was nice to have the extra space. We were near the front of the ship which may have made some of the rough seas we faced seem a little rougher but it was nothing we could not handle. The condition of the room was fantastic, everything worked, and our room attendant Romeo could not have been more helpful.

 

Condition of the Ship

 

I understand the ship is going in for updating in the not to distant future. I can’t see why because I saw nothing on the ship that needed updating. The condition of the ship was fantastic.

 

On Board Activities/Entertainment

 

We were there to relax so we did not work very hard at going to scheduled activities. We did purchase the thermal pass ($90 each) and made that part of our daily routine. We thought that was an excellent investment as we used it 12 of the 14 days of the cruise.

 

We used the gym on about half the days and after the first few days did not have any trouble waiting to use any of the equipment.

 

We only used the Lotus pool. We liked the fact it was a little more secluded and never had very many people using it.

 

On the last sea day we took the ultimate ships tour. On the surface it is pricy ($150 each) but we thought it was well worth it. It lasted about 3 ½ hours and was very interesting. There were about 12 people on the tour we got to see the laundry facilities, the photo and printing facilities, back stage and dressing rooms of the Princess theater, the kitchen, the medical facilities, the anchor room, saw the crew living area, the food storage areas, and the bridge. At each of the locations the senior officer responsible for that area (or in the case of the back stage area a couple of the dancers) talked to us. In addition to the tour we both got nice bath robes, chef’s jackets, several photos with the captain and many of the other presenters on the tour, champagne, drinks, and deserts. I don’t know if I would do this every time but everyone should do this at least once.

 

We did not make it to all the shows but we did see the following:

 

Singer/comedian Steve Morris. He was great. Don’t think we have enjoyed a cruise ship entertainer more.

 

Rock and Roll Juggler Mike Price. Very enjoyable show worth seeing.

 

Ventriloquist Dan Horn. Very enjoyable as well.

 

Vocal impressionist Sean O’ Shea. He was OK.

 

Comedian Derrick Cameron. He was OK

 

The Production Show “I Got the Music”. It is what it is. These production shows always seem like a bad episode of “Glee”. We did not see any of the other production shows.

 

Unless you want to sit through an hour of trivia or some other game beforehand it is impossible to get a seat in the explorers lounge for any show. Very few people leave after the trivia is over with. This is a bit of a pain.

 

Went to the Cruise Critic Meet and Greet the first full day of the cruise. Enjoyed meeting everyone but was a bit disappointed no one from the ship showed up. One of the folks organized a slot pull after the meet and greet where everyone contributed $10 and everyone took a turn and then everyone split the winnings. It was a lot of fun. We ended up making nearly 200% on our investment.

 

Dining/Drinking

 

We had anytime dining. The first couple of nights we tried eating at 7:15 in Pacific Moon and Santa Fe and had to wait about 15 minutes to get a seat. On the third night we went to dinner about 7:45 in Vivaldi, had no wait all, and thoroughly enjoyed the service we received from our waiters Jose and Victoria. After that we had the same table assigned to us in Vivaldi and had dinner between 7:45 and 8:15 without a wait. The quality of the food exceeded our expectations. We found the flexibility of anytime dining, not being hurried because of the low demand for later dining, and the advantage of getting to know our wait staff to be the perfect solution for us.

 

We had one traditional breakfast and lunch. The food and service were great but we were spending so much time in the Spa that we ended up doing most lunch and breakfasts up in the buffet. The food in the buffet was very good but the small size of the serving area and seating area made it an overall unpleasant experience.

 

The mass production coffee is undrinkable. One of our best investments was getting the coffee card so we could have unlimited fresh brewed coffee from the coffee bar.

 

We ordered the three wine box the first night of the cruise because given the single bottle prices of the wine it was a good deal. We found the wines to be good but not good enough to justify the high cost. After we finished that wine we just ordered some of the less expensive wines that were just fine.

 

We had pizza a couple of days and it was very good. There is an omelet station but unlike other cruise ships the omelet station does not include many other side dishes and you can not get any meats in your omelet.

 

We went to the afternoon tea on a couple of occasions. It was very well done, the scones were excellent, and was very enjoyable.

 

Ports/Excursions

 

Hilo. Went on an independent tour put on by Ricky’s Tours. Saw Volcano national park, Rainbow falls and several other sights. Well worth it and would recommend it.

 

Honolulu. Did the ships tour of the Arizona Memorial and City Drive. Well worth it and would recommend it. In the evening we went to the House Without a Key at the Hotel Holekulani for an evening of Hawaiian music and hula dancing by a former miss Hawaii. With Diamondhead to our left and the sun setting to our right along with the singing and dancing made it a very pleasurable evening.

 

Kauai. Had a private tour guide Karen Tilley who runs Eden Tours. Not inexpensive, but a great value. We went to a farmers market, saw some remote beaches, and other behind the scenes areas. Saw things we would not see without local knowledge. She provided a great lunch, water and snacks and will be sending us a CD with photos she took of our day together. A great day, would highly recommend her to anyone.

 

Maui. Used the morning to go to the beach and booked an independent whale watching tour in the afternoon. The beach is a $2.00 round trip from on a bus you pick up from a bus stop just behind the shopping center across the street from where the tenders drop you off. Had booked and gotten a confirmation though Extreme Adventures Maui with Scotch Mist Sailing Charters for our whale watching trip. When we got there Scotch Mist had no record of our reservation and told us not to worry because there is a lot of other things to do in Hawaii. They did issue a refund and referred us to Pacific Whale Foundation where we had a fantastic whale watching experience. I would avoid Extreme Adventures because the obviously have some issues in communicating with the tour operators and was a bit troubled by Scotch Mist’s lack of empathy but would highly recommend the Pacific Whale Foundation tour.

 

Maui was the only port where we tendered and I was not looking forward to it. As it turns out there was little difference then in the ports where the ship was docked. It was fast and easy to get on and off. They seem to have figured out the process.

 

Other

 

My wife and I are in our mid 50’s and we were younger then about 70% of the people on the cruise. We enjoyed not having to fight kids and teens to use hot tubs and other facilities. I hope we are able to cruise into our 80’s and beyond like many of our shipmates.

 

I understand how difficult it to provide internet service on a cruise ship and I do not expect it to be free or inexpensive. That said if you do charge a kings ransom for internet service it is not unreasonable for the person footing the bill to expect it to work. The service on the ship is horrendous and not worth what you have to pay. I calculated it out it cost me nearly $12 in internet time just to print our return boarding pass.

 

Disembarking was very well organized. Our transfers got us back to LAX quickly and we had no issues with our bags.

 

Every time I asked the staff for something or brought up a minor issue the staff could have been more helpful and engaged. There is no one on the ship that did not provide great service. I was impressed.

 

Summery

 

A great experience, I came home relaxed, I would recommend this to anyone. It was the fastest and most relaxing 14 days I can remember.

Thanks for your review---we go tomorrow!