Sapphire Princess, a cruise liner, entered service in May 2004. Constructed by Mitsubishi in Japan, she is a sister to the Diamond Princess (March 2004) and part of an enlarged Grand Princess class, with all the amenities and wide range of public rooms this entails. The 2,670-passenger Sapphire Princess has a gross tonnage of 115,875, length of 954 ft and draft of 28 ft. Her officers are British and Italian and her crew international.
Princess Cruises became rapidly famous with the long-running TV show Love Boat, and the company is now part of the Carnival Family of World's Leading Cruise Lines. The fleet has grown by leaps and bounds in both number and size of ships.
Most passengers aboard the Sapphire Princess are American of all ages, and some Britons add to the mix. Families come in droves during school holidays. Gratuities are added to the final bill, and these may be adjusted with a personal visit to the reception desk.
The Sapphire Princess spends May to September on the 7-day Inland Passage route between Vancouver and Alaska, then in September sails across the North Pacific for a China and Southeast Asia program until December. Australian and New Zealand itineraries last until April, whereupon the ship sails from Sydney via the South Pacific to Los Angeles. She and her sister Diamond Princess are the largest ships cruising the Pacific, and their broad beams prevent them from using the Panama Canal.
The Sapphire Princess is admittedly huge, but she is easy to navigate, especially from the Grand Plaza, a three-deck high atrium that serves as the heart. For vertical travel, three elevator banks and stair towers will connect you to all decks, and consider it healthy when making the long walk from one end of the ship to the other. Princess Theater, bi-level and forward on Decks 6 and 7, presents the main production shows, twice on one day with a third performance the following day. There is no need to rush to secure a seat if you can wait for the second night, with the bonus of a critique from fellow passengers. Explorers Lounge, with its Middle Eastern and African decor, presents cabaret acts such as magicians and comedians, alternating with popular dancing sessions. Club Fusion serves multiple purposes as a nightclub, cabaret room and the platform for TV trivia and game shows. For light entertainment and a drink before or after dinner, try the Wheelhouse Bar with a classy British Pub atmosphere, a musical trio and Princess maritime memorabilia, or Crooners Bar off the Grand Plaza featuring a pianist who encourages requests. From 11 pm, owls flock to Skywalkers Night Club, perched high on Deck 18 just aft of the funnel, for a disco hosted by a DJ who manipulates the music, neon, strobes, moving lights and interactive TVs.
As the Sapphire Princess is registered in Bermuda, the captain performs legal marriages for Americans in the wedding chapel. The ceremony can be broadcast live over the internet for those not present. Forward on Sun Deck 15, the Lotus Spa houses the beauty parlor, massage rooms, gymnasium, a lap pool, aerobics classes, and fitness programs. Princess Links is a nine-hole golf putting green on Sports deck 16 just forward of the funnel. Five swimming pools include the Calypso Pool and Bar enclosed under a glass dome, the outdoor Neptune's Reef and a children's splash pool, plus eight whirlpools. Children have their own separate deck space, hot tubs and pool. With a dramatic flare, the Sapphire Princess sports prominent jet engine pods on the top of her funnel, but they serve as decoration only with the actual gas turbines housed inside the stack.
Princess' Personal Choice dining provides traditional fixed seating in the aft International Dining Room or anytime from 6 to10 pm in one of four restaurants on Decks 5 and 6 located aft of Grand Plaza. Pacific Moon serves Asian cuisine, Santa Fe Mexican and Vivaldi Italian and The Savoy a variety of prime steaks. Sabatini's Trattoria, for an eight-course eating extravaganza, charges an extra tariff and requires reservations. For informal dining, the Horizon Court is open 24 hours a day high up on Lido Deck 14, and counters there and by the pools serve pizza, burger and sundaes.
Of the 1,337 cabins 1,000 have ocean views, and 75% of these have balconies. Balcony cabins on three decks are overlooked by those above, so they lack privacy. All cabins have twin beds that can be made into queens, multifunction phones, refrigerators, safes, hair dryers, and remote-control TV with CNN, TNT, CNBC, Discovery Channel, movies, special interest lectures and interviews. Mini-suites and up have tub baths, robes, two TVs and a separate sitting area with a sofa bed.
The Sapphire Princess is a virtual city at sea with every activity imaginable aboard.
