After a long journey down to Southampton, we have arrived to the port terminal. We were greeted by staff and taken through the terminal and was advised on what customers had to do when boarding the ship. This was very interesting to see as I had never been to a terminal before.
After looking at the entertainment we had a tour of the decks with the swimming pools and the different food outlets that were available. The buffet was brilliant and offered a massive choice of different foods from all around the world. The staff were very welcoming and helpful. Drinks in the buffet restaurant were a mixture of self service and waiter service.
Next we went to the “Sanctuary” which was the adult only section of the ship. Here customers can relax in their own Adult Only pool, relax on the beautiful sun loungers and even hire a cabana and have some privacy or pay extra for a massage at sea.
There were 4 pools in total which included a children splash pool, hot tubs and a pool with a retractable roof which was brilliant if the weather was not at its best. I also liked the Movie Under The Stars where customers could enjoy a film lounging on a sun bed with popcorn and drink – this is perfect for a family night.
There were lots activities for the kids to do too with 3 different Kids Clubs for all ages. Here the children can be dropped off and picked up. They even offer a babysitting service so the parents can enjoy a nice meal in one of the restaurants or a drink and a dance in the Nightclub. In the children’s club there were lots of activities for them to enjoy. Princess Cruises has teamed up with Discovery Chanel so there were loads of active things for children to do.
Customers can enjoy the Nightclub “Skywalkers” which I thought was fantastic as the room is roof to floor windows so you have the feeling you are “dancing under the stars”. There was also a wine tasting bar which can be included in your drinks package, a casino on board and bingo if customers fancied a night of gambling.
While we were on board we managed to see an inside cabin. These rooms seemed pretty basic however still comfortable to stay in. Unfortunately we didn’t get chance to see any other rooms as there were still customers on the ship and most of the rooms were already occupied.
We were also lucky enough to try the amazing food they had to offer. We had a choice of meat or fish (I had meat option) which was lovely, we also had a starter and desert which was just as lovely. I noticed that the Chefs were very accommodating as one lady on the visit had allergies to certain things on the menu, this was no problem and was offered an alternative straight away. There were a number of restaurants the customers could choose from on the ship from Sabatini’s Grill to Savoy dining, offering all different dishes from around the world for customers to enjoy.
Once we had finished our meal our tour guide came to show us a key fob they are hoping to introduce in the year 2020 called the Medallion. This key is fantastic for all customers, all the fobs are different colours depending on if they have sailed with Princess Cruises before or if it’s their first time. This is making it more personal for the customer. The Medallion can open the doors before the customer get to the door, order drinks and food from their sunbed or order room service. The fobs are also good for the staff on board as the different colours means different things. E.g. if the fob is blue the waiters and staff can say welcome on board or if its yellow the staff say welcome home as this means the customers have sailed before. This is a very good idea and adds the personal touch for the customer. This get delivered to the customer’s home so the customer can personalise it themselves. The fobs are currently being used in the US and hopefully being used in the UK in 2020.
I really enjoyed my visit to the Sapphire Princess, it was very educational and I learnt a lot from seeing the ship itself. I would definitely recommend the ship to first time cruisers with families and also to regular cruisers who are wanting to relax and enjoy the different facilities and entertainment on board.
