Ruby -Cays?'s and Sanctuary ?'s

[aquagirl1]

Pretty excited first time cruising -Ruby Jan 17/2009

These forums are excellent!

My first question is about Princess Cay's -do you pay for food and non-alcholic beverages while there and also do you need or have to pay for transportation from the ship.

I know you have to pay to use the Sanctuary but do you have to pay for food or non alcholic drinks while there?

I've heard that if you book spa treatments and buy internet minutes on the first day of the cruise you can get it cheaper-has anyone else heard of this?

Lastly if you don't buy land tours -can you get off the ship at anytime and go wander or take a taxi -I heard you have to pay to leave the ship-can't believe that!

Thank you in advance for your feedback.

[tvaud]

Pretty excited first time cruising -Ruby Jan 17/2009

These forums are excellent!

My first question is about Princess Cay's -do you pay for food and non-alcholic beverages while there and also do you need or have to pay for transportation from the ship.

I know you have to pay to use the Sanctuary but do you have to pay for food or non alcholic drinks while there?

I've heard that if you book spa treatments and buy internet minutes on the first day of the cruise you can get it cheaper-has anyone else heard of this?

Lastly if you don't buy land tours -can you get off the ship at anytime and go wander or take a taxi -I heard you have to pay to leave the ship-can't believe that!

Thank you in advance for your feedback.

 

Hi..first of all, welcome to the boards and to Princess. On Princess Cays, you do not have to pay for the buffet. If you want soda or an alcoholic drink, you will have to use your cruise card to pay for them. Water and iced tea are free, as they would be on the ship. There is no fee to use the tenders to get to and from the island. In the Sanctuary, which is $10 per session to use, there is a spa menu that will have a delivery fee, but it is very minimal. The spa has specials that are printed in the daily Patters....usually the best specials are on port days. By the way, you can book spa appointments before you even get on the ship on the My Princess area of Princess.com. The internet cafe offers packages of minutes to use on the internet. If you are in a suite, there is no fee. There is no fee to get off the ship in any port. If you do not book a shore excursion through Princess, you can still get off the ship and explore the port on your own. Just make sure you are back on board in plenty of time before the ship sails. If they say they are leaving at 4pm, be on board by 3 or 3:30 at the latest. They WILL leave without you and you will have to find your own way to the next port.

Keep doing your research and you'll have a great time.:)

[DanJ]

The only thing with the tenders is that suite passengers, and those with shore excursions booked through the ship get priority when they start taking passengers ashore. If you want to leave the ship within, say, the first hour, they will have you go to a lounge, or likely, the Princess Theater, and take you to the tenders in next order from there. After the first hour or so, the rush dies down and they will announce you can just proceed down to the gangway and get on the next available boat. But as said above, there is no fee.

 

As for the buffet on Princess Cays, it's not open the whole time. We sailed at 4 and the buffet was closed at 1. We had done the 1130 glass bottom boat tour, which was supposed to be an hour, but went long. We just managed to get into the buffet area as they were closing it, and there wasn't much left.

 

I do beleive we were offered a deal on the internet packages the first day, but I can't recall, and I don't have my Patters handy from then right at the moment.

[aquagirl1]

Thank you Dan and Tvaud for your prompt and most helpful replies.

I will be researching thoroughly it's what I do best -lol!