We were previously booked to cruise on Diamond in May 2017 and at the last moment, accepted a move over offer from Princess which enabled (or forced us - being not able to cancel air travel or post cruise accommodation) to travel Japan on our own using JR Rail Pass and fell in love with Japan and it's people. Big shout out to JTB Australia for organising a last minute itinerary and accommodation. The Princess moveover offer gave us a free cruise (up to 20 days + free upgrade and our original fare in refundable onboard credit) yes, we took it !
When it came to selecting our 'replacement cruise' from Princess Japan was our pick. Due to previous reviews, we were a bit concerned about the condition of the Diamond Princess but have absolutely nothing to complain about. We have previously cruised out of Singapore on Sapphire Princess so were familiar with the layout.
Due to our moveover offer, we were fortunate to be upgraded and our mini suite D626 which was fabulous with heaps of room. Luckily the weather was good as there isn't any cover over the balcony on Dolphin deck which may or may not be an issue. Our stateroom steward Aldwin was adorable - super cheery, always there if you needed anything but politely in the backround. He celebrated 15 years with Princess during our cruise and obviously loves his job and takes great pride in his work. The bed was great, super comgy and bathroom huge although couldn't be used as a bath as the plug was threaded and couldn't be used as a bath. Not Aldwins' fault, never bothered to let him know.
Amazing amount of room. Appreciated the bath (although couldn't be used due to threaded plug) I'm sure that would've been fixed if we'd bothered to complain. Heaps of hangers. Balcony uncovered and exposed to the weather. Would be hard to go back to a balcony cabin
Shared a taxi with another couple to the Kamakazi Museum. 16,000 yen covered driver plus 2 hours wait. Extremely moving museum and much cheaper than shore excursion.
We had visitited and were out by the time the shore excursions and school groups arrived. Highly recommended