KEY POINTS:
Getting lost on the way to breakfast our first morning aboard this floating resort, on a four-night jaunt down the coast of New Zealand, was more than a little embarrassing.
How hard could it be? Get up, pinch ourselves, look out our wonderful window, head to elevator... but
I had underestimated navigating our way through about 18 levels of the Sapphire Princess.
This five-star superliner has nine restaurants and cafes, including the gorgeous Italian trattoria Sabatini's and Sterling Steakhouse, where before ordering you can view huge, cuts of meat wrapped in clingfilm.
And if you find yourself hungry at strange hours, Horizon Court offers a 24-hour buffet with an astounding range of food - although, no matter what the hour or meal, I cannot bring myself to put maple syrup on bacon and eggs. Then there's the poolside pizzeria, BBQ grill and ice-cream shack.
The Sapphire Princess' executive head chef Marcello Berardi, in charge of the two main galleys that serve five dining rooms and a third that caters for the Horizon Court, says the ship goes through about 140 tonnes of food per cruise to feed 2700 passengers and 1100 crew.
All things considered, the boat is a monster, one of the biggest to cruise the waters of Australasia. Docked at Auckland's Princes Wharf, it dwarfs the neighbouring Hilton Hotel and, at 290m long, its derriere extends well beyond the wharf. The ship's bridge alone is more than 50m long and is built with "wings" that stretch out past the ship's edge to hang directly over the sea.
The Sapphire Princess pushes along easily at an average of 18 knots, and if it's running late, it can make up time by taking the speed up to 22 knots - very flashy, indeed. If the swell induces a little too much sway, the bridge will pop out one (or both) of the 7.5m stabiliser fins. Easy.
Back in Auckland before departure, the view from the bow was fantastic - glass of bubbles in hand - looking out over the city in the setting sun. The sail-away drinks continued in the lee of the Outrigger Bar on Deck 14, where we stayed until we'd completed the magnificent passage into the steadily darkening Hauraki Gulf, en route to Mt Maunganui.
From Mt Maunganui, the cruise headed south down the coast, stopping for a day each in Christchurch and Port Chalmers. We disembarked there after four glorious nights on board, but the ship carried on without us for a further eight nights to Sydney.
Although it would have been nice to keep going, it was hard to complain.
The rooms were excellent, and the staff spoiled us rotten. And the ship never felt crowded, no matter where we were, day or night.
Asked when the time came to disembark if we'd consider a cruising holiday again, our answer was that the Sapphire Princess already had us at "welcome aboard".
Need to know
The Sapphire Princess sails Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Pacific Islands and the US.
The 2008 12-night cruise and one-way airfare between Auckland and Sydney begins at NZ$3282 per person for interior twin accommodation and economy flights, transfers, taxes and charges. Accommodation with an ocean view for the same period begins at NZ$3699pp.
The currency used on board is US dollars.
Visit www.princesscruises.co.nz or call 0800 951 200 - or see the Sapphire Princess in action at www.princess.com/bridgecams/sapphirebridgecam.html
- Detours, HoS