Royal Deluxe balcony vs Mini suite

Hi,

I am looking into a 10 day cruise on the Royal. Anyone have insight into whether there is much value in booking a mini suite for about $200 more than a deluxe balcony? (Aside from a tub vs. shower stall.) Deluxe balcony looks very similar to mini suite online. Also, is there any significant difference between Royal and Regal (which I have sailed) or should I expect the same experience altogether? Thanks.

Hi,

I am looking into a 10 day cruise on the Royal. Anyone have insight into whether there is much value in booking a mini suite for about $200 more than a deluxe balcony? (Aside from a tub vs. shower stall.) Deluxe balcony looks very similar to mini suite online. Also, is there any significant difference between Royal and Regal (which I have sailed) or should I expect the same experience altogether? Thanks.

Save your money. ;)

The mini-suite os larger overall with two TVs, a curtain separating the sitting room, and bathtub in the bathroom....

The Deluxe had a small sofa with table. And that's about it over a regular balcony cabin...

For us, the mini-suite is rarely worth the extra money. While the tub can be nice, having to step over the ledge can be troubling I'm rough seas and it's not any wider than the standard shower is... And the extra TV is no bonus to us at all.

On the orher hand, we LOVE the Deluxe category on Royal class ships. The extra living space (maybe 10 square feet or a tad more) makes the cabin feel much more spacious, it's great to have the sitting area besides the bed or single chair, etc. And it's usually less expensive than even an inside, which is a bonus. When available, we book Emerald deck Deluxe which are classed as "obstructed view" but the cast majority have minimal to no obstruction when looking out to sea...they're great!

So for us - save the money from a mini and enjoy the extra space balcony deluxe...

Thanks for the advice. Seems like a deluxe balcony would be very nice.

We have cruised the Royal Previously and we did select the mini-suite. The issue depends on money. But with that said, we found the extra T.V., curtain separating the cabin, and overall extra-space to be worth if the cost if one is willing to pay for it.

We are currently booked for a Trans-Atlantic on Royal next years and we have selected Club Class. May wish to consider this.

We have cruised the Royal Previously and we did select the mini-suite. The issue depends on money. But with that said, we found the extra T.V., curtain separating the cabin, and overall extra-space to be worth if the cost if one is willing to pay for it.

 

We are currently booked for a Trans-Atlantic on Royal next years and we have selected Club Class. May wish to consider this.

I liked the idea of club class....until I saw the price. It's way over the cost of a mini suite and I don't know that I would get the value out of it. We tend to eat mostly in the specialty venues, so a reserved spot in the MDR isn't really something we'd use too often. We're both platinum so we get priority embark/disembark already. The in room wine, I could take it or leave it. We did a mini suite on the Regal a few years ago and just loved it, but if we could save a few bucks and have a similar amount of living space in the deluxe balcony, that would be nice. If money was no object of course, I'd book it :)

Hi,

Also, is there any significant difference between Royal and Regal (which I have sailed) or should I expect the same experience altogether? Thanks.

Royal and Regal had similar layouts at first. Royal however added a passenger midship staircase in drydock last Oct. It had none before like the Regal. It also had changes at the Princess Theater. The others are still the same. I guess you will generally have the same experience on either.

We enjoy the mini suites and have booked them on our last two cruises. We are also considering the Royal for next year and I noticed that the picture of the premium deluxe balcony cabin looks very similar to the mini suite. It seems like the Royal has very few mini suites overall compared to the other ships. We passed behind the Regal in the Caribbean last week and I was admiring the aft balconies. After looking a bit more, I saw that some are premium deluxe balconies, which sound very tempting, until I read about the soot problem...I don't know what to do now!

DO note that the sofa in the mini is a full size, "3 person" sofa whereas the deluxe has a "2 person" loveseat.

We got a free upgrade from deluxe to mini on Regal a couple of years ago and truly enjoyed the 2 TVs and ability to curtain the bed from sitting area. I had gotten a cold so we spent a lot of time in the cabin! Being able to each sit on either end of the sofa with our legs extended to watch movies was really nice.

But for upcoming Regal cruise, we went with the obstructed deluxe to get benefit of more space while saving money.

We enjoy the mini suites and have booked them on our last two cruises. We are also considering the Royal for next year and I noticed that the picture of the premium deluxe balcony cabin looks very similar to the mini suite. It seems like the Royal has very few mini suites overall compared to the other ships. We passed behind the Regal in the Caribbean last week and I was admiring the aft balconies. After looking a bit more, I saw that some are premium deluxe balconies, which sound very tempting, until I read about the soot problem...I don't know what to do now!

We loved our Aft Deluxe Balcony on the Royal last year. There was minor soot on some mornings but our Cabin Steward kept the balcony very clean every day. We used the balcony every day and left every port while sitting there watching the wake while the islands disappeared into the sunsets. the balconies were very large.

The mini-suite os larger overall with two TVs, a curtain separating the sitting room, and bathtub in the bathroom....

The Deluxe had a small sofa with table. And that's about it over a regular balcony cabin...

For us, the mini-suite is rarely worth the extra money. While the tub can be nice, having to step over the ledge can be troubling I'm rough seas and it's not any wider than the standard shower is... And the extra TV is no bonus to us at all.

On the orher hand, we LOVE the Deluxe category on Royal class ships. The extra living space (maybe 10 square feet or a tad more) makes the cabin feel much more spacious, it's great to have the sitting area besides the bed or single chair, etc. And it's usually less expensive than even an inside, which is a bonus. When available, we book Emerald deck Deluxe which are classed as "obstructed view" but the cast majority have minimal to no obstruction when looking out to sea...they're great!

So for us - save the money from a mini and enjoy the extra space balcony deluxe...

Really depends on the person and how you use your cabin.

We always book a mini suite....have booked one on the Royal TA, a 15 days cruise next october. Bath tub for us is very important especially on a long cruise, we have breakfast room service in our cabin... enjoy having two tvs... my dh and I like to watch different things on the TV at home, same on a cruise in the evening or early morning. This will be our first cruise on the Royal... real issue for me is the narrow balcony and no promenada.. will see if we go back on the Royal but would always book a mini suite.

Can anyone advise what princess means by "Upgraded Amenities" and "This stateroom also includes some of the amenities offered in a Mini-Suite stateroom" in reference to the Deluxe Balcony cabins?

In all photos and Youtube videos I have seen, it appears that the bathroom amenities are exactly the same as the regular balconies. I can't imagine what other amenities they are referencing unless the loveseat can be categorized as an amenity.

real issue for me is the narrow balcony

For us too. Which is why we booked one of the cabins with the bumped out balcony

We are on Baja deck so I don't think we'll have an issue with anyone being able to see onto the balcony or the blue lights from the Walk above.

But we decided the size of the balcony was more important to us so we booked it.

We loved our Aft Deluxe Balcony on the Royal last year. There was minor soot on some mornings but our Cabin Steward kept the balcony very clean every day. We used the balcony every day and left every port while sitting there watching the wake while the islands disappeared into the sunsets. the balconies were very large.

Do you remember which cabin you were in? I'm very intrigued by those aft deluxe balconies! I'm a huge balcony fan and just love sitting on my balcony :). Thanks for that information!

we don't generally enjoy the mini suite. Who needs 2tv's. But we loved the deluxe balcony on the Royal. It is a larger cabin and the bathroom seemed larger, especially the shower area.

I would save my money and take the deluxe balcony. We got lucky because the obstructed view was not obstructed. We could look straight out without any interference.

Enjoy your cruise.

Can anyone advise what princess means by "Upgraded Amenities" and "This stateroom also includes some of the amenities offered in a Mini-Suite stateroom" in reference to the Deluxe Balcony cabins?

In all photos and Youtube videos I have seen, it appears that the bathroom amenities are exactly the same as the regular balconies. I can't imagine what other amenities they are referencing unless the loveseat can be categorized as an amenity.

It's only the couch and table that I have seen different from a regular balcony that has only a chair and a table instead. And the deluxe cabin is about a foot deeper than the regular. Unless I missed some.

Our bathroom amenities in our minisuite on Royal were the same as we've had in balcony staterooms. The bathroom size with full length tub was wonderful enough that we didn't care about the amenities. We bring our own regardless of what ship we are on.

The best thing in the Royal minisuite, which I will miss on Coral, is the lightproof curtain you can close to make the bedroom side dark. I loved that. The depth door to balcony is much greater in the minisuite. You don't want 2 different TV shows on, but having one turned toward the full size sofa and one toward the bed gives you very comfortable choices.

The other amenity is the two glasses of champagne on sailing day. Not exactly a "wow" factor.

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It's only the couch and table that I have seen different from a regular balcony that has only a chair and a table instead. And the deluxe cabin is about a foot deeper than the regular. Unless I missed some.

Thanks for the info - that's exactly what I thought. Can it be considered false advertising then? They promote upgraded amenities as well as the loveseat as two different upgrades from a regular balcony in their cabin descriptions.

I fondly remember the days when the lotus spa sample bottles were provided in every cabin (not just the lotion). Although booking a cabin for additional amenities is not a deal breaker for us, it's disappointing when something is promised and then expectations are not met. :confused:

We have stayed in cabin B738 on the Royal for two cruises now including the TA in Sept, 2015. We just love that cabin so have it booked again for TA in Oct this year. We had a lot of soot one day on our first cruise, but received quite a bit of OBC for our trouble and then really didn't have any to speak of on the TA. So, it you like larger balconies and a aft view, I say book it.

Hi,

I am looking into a 10 day cruise on the Royal. Anyone have insight into whether there is much value in booking a mini suite for about $200 more than a deluxe balcony? (Aside from a tub vs. shower stall.) Deluxe balcony looks very similar to mini suite online. Also, is there any significant difference between Royal and Regal (which I have sailed) or should I expect the same experience altogether? Thanks.

Definately yes.

Do the shower curtains in the Deluxe Balcony cabins cling to you like they do on other Princess ships? This is one reason I prefer a minisuite with a tub over a balcony cabin.

Do the shower curtains in the Deluxe Balcony cabins cling to you like they do on other Princess ships? This is one reason I prefer a minisuite with a tub over a balcony cabin.

Nope, not in our experience. Not anymore than they do in the bathtub in a minisuite. The shower is slightly larger than in balcony cabins on other ships, and also has a small ledge to hold toiletries and prop your leg for sharing, if that applies.

A couple of clothespins clipped to the bottom of an amorous shower curtain will

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nip it in the bud. I keep them in my carry on.

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