Sunfinder Vacations

Sun Princess, the first of what Princess Cruises calls "Grand Class" ships (including Dawn Princess, Golden Princess, and the larger Grand Princess) debuted in 1995. At that time, she was the largest passenger ship ever built, and she changed the face of cruising forever. At the millennium she's still a trendsetter, offering a variety of great amenities and itineraries, fine service, and a high level of passenger comfort and consideration. Physically, she's the length of three football fields, 14 stories high, and containing more than $2 million worth of fine art which hangs on landings, in public areas, and hallways. Innovations also include three swimming pools, a sprawling fitness center complex, a sports deck, children's and teens' programs, and two showrooms.

Sun Princess averages a 40 percent repeat passenger rate, with older travelers preferring the Panama Canal itinerary. Families and younger passengers opt for Alaska sailings. Holidays change the demographics as families, sometimes three or four generations, cruise. Passengers don't mix too much on a ship this size, but first timers and veterans all take part in a variety of shore excursions and daytime activities. The ship's vast cruise staff (more than 900 men and women) works very hard to keep everyone happy. It's the kind of ship where those who enjoy the disco make friends with other disco fans, bridge players meet other bridge players, etc.

Personal Choice dining offers alternatives to the traditional two-seating dinners in the Marquis and Regency dining rooms, such as 24-hour room service, a pizzeria, a day-long grill, and the Horizon Court, with a late evening bistro menu.

More than 400 cabins have balconies. All cabins are generally well-designed, but unless you're cruising in a mini-suite or suite, when one passenger opens a closet door and another wants to get in or out of the bathroom, it's a tight fit. Closet space is adequate for two people for a week or 10 days. Amenities are just about the best at sea. Bathrobes and refrigerators are available in any category, as are fresh fruit, 24-hour room service, hair dryers, nightly turndowns, televisions, and ecologically safe toiletries. Eighteen cabins meet ADA requirements for physically-challenged travelers. Lighting is quite good, and includes a bed lamp with a diffuser so that your partner's light doesn't shine right in your eyes. No Promenade Deck cabins have obstructed views. Category BB cabins, oceanview with balcony, are 153 square feet; and Category N, inside cabins and the ship's best value, are 138 square feet.

The Marquis and Regency dining rooms feature a series of five to 10 tables for two to eight guests in intimate groupings. Tables are spaced comfortably apart and a floral beige and green/blue color scheme is carried out in the carpet as well as in the china. Only the chairs (a coral color) differ between the two dining rooms, where twinkling lights glitter over diners. Lovely soft murals on the walls add to the romantic feel and gracious service of these dining rooms. Princess has done away with formal wine stewards. The waiter now serves that purpose, and he is assisted by a junior waiter or busboy who offers excellent service. Once you ask for anchovies with your Caesar salad, you'll get anchovies each time!

Executive chef Paolo Merio creates wonderful entrées and pastas that are superb. Vegetarian menus and lighter menus low in salt, fat, and cholesterol are available for each meal. Breakfast is available all day in the Horizon Court, via room service, and in one of the dining rooms on an open-seating basis. Room service meals are served promptly, and food is warm and well prepared. Service in the Horizon Court is fair. Waiters don't carry trays. In fact, trays aren't used; they are more like platters, and by the time you find all the flatware, choose your food, and get a drink, you need another hand. Spoons aren't near cereal, they're near the fruit. Omelets and cooked-to-order eggs are fine, but getting them is a hassle. Nonetheless, it's the most popular eating place on the ship, as the views are spectacular.

Most of the public rooms are set on Deck 7, including the Princess Theatre, decorated with Broadway musical themes, comfortable theater seats with built-in tables, and not one bad seat in the house. Carpets and upholstery are a pleasant shade of wine. The soaring atrium, starting with the lobby on Deck 5 and extending to Deck 8, features wonderful glass, brass, and wood elevators. The three materials are found throughout the atrium, where the captain's cocktail parties are set. Vista Lounge is at the other end of the deck. Deck 7 offers a delightful traffic pattern between two show rooms, past the piano bar in the Atrium Lounge, and past the popular Wheelhouse Bar with its clubhouse feel.

Washers and dryers are located around the ship. Detergent is $1 a load, and operation is complimentary.

Two Deck 7 showrooms—Vista Lounge and Princess Theatre—act as the center for nightly entertainment, offering everything from award-winning musical productions to cabaret, magicians, comics, movies, and lectures. The rooms have been designed without poles or dividers, but some of the far-side seats in Vista Lounge offer a less than stellar view of the stars. Princess Theatre has theater-style seating and the Lounge has a variety of banquette-type couches and chairs. In the Lounge, not all seats accommodate a table, so getting a drink might mean holding on to your glass throughout a show. Other nightly entertainment venues are the Deck 7 Wheelhouse Bar with ongoing music and dancing; Shooting Stars disco; and Horizon Court, where there's music at night. Piano music is also played in the Atrium Lounge on Deck 7. Rendez-Vous Bar is an intimate spot for caviar, champagne, and a quiet drink or two, while a steel band seems to turn up all over the vessel all day long. If that's not enough, the popular Grand Casino on Deck 8 offers slots as well as table games: three poker tables, five blackjack tables, one craps table, and one roulette table.

Sun Princess has a Sports Deck for volleyball, basketball, and paddle tennis, and an onboard golf program. The Fitness Center is neither large nor small and space seems adequate. It is open 24 hours and is located on Deck 12. It contains eight treadmills, 12 Stairmasters, four exercycles, a multi-weight machine, weight bench, free weights, a separate aerobics room, a splash pool and a Jacuzzi. Three times around Promenade Deck (Deck 7) jogging track equals one mile, and those inclined can jog at any time of the day.

The spa offers the usual beauty and massage treatments focusing on aromatherapy and a marvelous treatment incorporating aromatherapy, reflexology, and massage. The two main pools on Deck 12 tend to get crowded, and while pool towels are available in each cabin, lounges tend to be "reserved," which the ship discourages: Passengers get there early and place a towel on the lounge, and it's a scouting expedition for other passengers to find space. Some wonderful secluded areas do exist: Behind the spa, the area above the pools, and around Promenade Deck. A third pool, a splash pool, is located behind the fitness center.

Daytime activities onboard include wine tasting, an innovative cooking contest, bridge lessons, lectures, the ever-popular bingo, movies (occasionally in the theater) and in-room films, and trivia games. Internet connection is available via the business center (Deck 12) and available at certain times of the day for $7.50 for 15 minutes of access time.

Shore excursions are stressed strongly and guests don't have an easy time trying to get information to explore on their own. The ship operates shuttle service to the gates of the terminal whenever possible.

"Princess Pelicans" is the activity program for children ages 3-12. Princess Teen Club is designed for children ages 13-17. The supervised programs are offered in the children's center when the ship is in port, and in the evenings. Charge for group babysitting is $5 per child, per hour. Children's program notices appear in "Princess Patter." A sign-in security system is used, while beepers keep parents of younger children in touch. Upwards of 200 youngsters could be in the programs during holiday sailings, and structured activities are blended with free play periods. Once each cruise, a children's dinner allows parents to dine alone, but a children's menu is offered daily. Children of all ages, even some rather blasé teens, seemed to enjoy being with other young sailors.

Diapers and formula are not available onboard. Make arrangements before boarding, especially for babysitting. Women who will enter their third trimester of pregnancy during the cruise cannot sail.

Passengers are 40+ on Caribbean cruises and 50+ on Alaska cruises and all other cruising regions. You'll see more families during holidays and school vacation periods.

Princess recommends gratuities of $3 per person, per day to your cabin steward; $3 pp/pd to your waiter; and $1.75 pp/pd to your assistant waiter. Gratuities for the head waiter and maître d' are left to guests' discretion.

Casual nights call for open neck shirts, slacks, and sports wear for men and women. On semiformal evenings, women wear dresses or pantsuits and men don coats and ties. Formal wear brings out all the glitz you can imagine, and tuxedos, dinner jackets, or dark suits for men. Most men don tuxedos.

• Cruise line - Princess
• Ship name - Sun Princess
• Type of cruise - Elegant Resort
• Total cabins - 975
• Private balcony cabins - 410
• Decks - 14
• Total crew - 900
• Passenger capacity - 1950
• Ship size - Large
• Officers nationality - British/Italian
• Year entered service - 1995
• Registry - United Kingdom
• Tonnage - 77,000
• Ship length - 856

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