Gaynors Posted December 4, 2016 #1 Share Posted December 4, 2016 If you are considering or have booked a regular balcony room for 4 on the Royal or Regal - DON'T DO IT!!! The layout of the room (when the 3rd and 4th berths are opened) is horrible and it is impossible to navigate the room when the ladders for the bunks are in place. I'm not complaining about the square footage of the room. It was fine and we have sailed with 4 people in much smaller rooms with no problem. It is all in the design and use of the space. For brand new ships the design is the worst I have ever seen and we've been cruising with 4 in a room for many many years on many cruise lines. Other Princess ships don't have this poor design. I understand the deluxe balcony room would only have one upper bunk and one pull out sofa bed, but Princess shouldn't be selling these regular balcony rooms for 4. We are not large people and had a lot of difficulty navigating the room when the bunks are down and if the ladders are in place at the end of the beds (which because of the design of the pull down beds is the only place they fit) it is a hazard to move around the room in the dark. As you can see in the photos there are sharp corners and very little clearance between the bottom bunks and the wall. Here are some pictures - note the ladders are against the wall -because if they were in place I couldn't have been moving around to take the pictures. Just saying... you've been warned :eek::eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colo Cruiser Posted December 4, 2016 #2 Share Posted December 4, 2016 (edited) Well at least the extra berths are not protruding from the walls when they are stowed. Edited December 4, 2016 by Colo Cruiser Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaynors Posted December 4, 2016 Author #3 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Well at least the extra berths are not protruding from the walls when they are stowed. No, they were not, but in the rooms we've had where they are "protruding" they are above the beds and not in the walking space. So we've never had any problems with the beds protruding from the walls. Understanding with 4 people in a room there are going to be some extra beds coming from somewhere... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colo Cruiser Posted December 4, 2016 #4 Share Posted December 4, 2016 No, they were not, but in the rooms we've had where they are "protruding" they are above the beds and not in the walking space. So we've never had any problems with the beds protruding from the walls. Understanding with 4 people in a room there are going to be some extra beds coming from somewhere... To each his own I guess...... I will take your setup any day over beds protruding from walls. Its is miserable. The next worst in a 4 person cabin would be a rollaway. An absolute safety hazard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OC SeaPA Posted December 4, 2016 #5 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Thanks for the information. What about on the Ruby princess? I think we are going to cancel the cabin for 4 and take the family on another type of vacation or another cruise line that has better accommodations for family. They will be disappointed, but better than to spend $4000 for a miserable time (I know my family!) I know this is a princess thread, but any other families have had goodcabins on other lines? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colo Cruiser Posted December 4, 2016 #6 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Thanks for the information. What about on the Ruby princess? I think we are going to cancel the cabin for 4 and take the family on another type of vacation or another cruise line that has better accommodations for family. They will be disappointed, but better than to spend $4000 for a miserable time (I know my family!) I know this is a princess thread, but any other families have had goodcabins on other lines? Why not look at getting 2 cabins? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plan09 Posted December 4, 2016 #7 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Can you share which cabin this is? Thank you. Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunsetbeachgal Posted December 4, 2016 #8 Share Posted December 4, 2016 (edited) Why not look at getting 2 cabins? Agree. Regal and Royal have some connecting cabins. More expensive but definitely more comfortable! Plus two bathrooms! Sent from my iPhone using Forums Edited December 4, 2016 by sunsetbeachgal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colo Cruiser Posted December 4, 2016 #9 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Agree. Regal and Royal have some connecting cabins. More expensive but definitely more comfortable! Plus two bathrooms! Or get an inside across the hall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaynors Posted December 4, 2016 Author #10 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Can you share which cabin this is? Thank you. Sent from my iPhone using Forums The pictures are from E301. We had friends in E302 and M302 with the exact same setup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaynors Posted December 4, 2016 Author #11 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Thanks for the information. What about on the Ruby princess? I think we are going to cancel the cabin for 4 and take the family on another type of vacation or another cruise line that has better accommodations for family. They will be disappointed, but better than to spend $4000 for a miserable time (I know my family!) I know this is a princess thread, but any other families have had goodcabins on other lines? Don't know specifically about the Ruby but we had a balcony for 4 on the Caribbean Princess and the layout was much better. I wouldn't give up on a cruise yet as each cruise line and even different "class ships" within a cruise line have different cabin layouts. I tried to find pics of the Regal room for 4 before we sailed but didn't find any... one of the reasons for this post. The layout on the Celebrity "S" class ships is very nice for 4. Also we've done balconies on the Freedom Class on RCI and the room layout for 4 was good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaynors Posted December 4, 2016 Author #12 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Agree. Regal and Royal have some connecting cabins. More expensive but definitely more comfortable! Plus two bathrooms! Sent from my iPhone using Forums 2 bathrooms is definitely a plus!!! but you have to consider that 2 rooms can cost quite a bit more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colo Cruiser Posted December 4, 2016 #13 Share Posted December 4, 2016 2 bathrooms is definitely a plus!!! but you have to consider that 2 rooms can cost quite a bit more. Thats why I said an inside. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaynors Posted December 4, 2016 Author #14 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Thats why I said an inside. 2 insides were a lot more money than our 1 balcony room for our Thanksgiving cruise when we booked. Getting one balcony and one inside would have been extremely cost prohibitive. It would have been better to get a suite. You just have to price all the options and make the decision that is best for your family and budget. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphey Posted December 4, 2016 #15 Share Posted December 4, 2016 (edited) I know it might be hard, but can you explain how the set up is better on the other Princess ships? It seems to me, most balcony cabins are the same no matter what ship. Is there room for the stairs between the beds? Or are the beds "drop down". Thank you. Edited December 4, 2016 by Murphey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truscon Posted December 4, 2016 #16 Share Posted December 4, 2016 I think this is perfectly fine! We have books this for May 2017 on Crown. We have had one upper berth and rollaway before, that is tight. The option is take it or go for a different cabin, or not cruise? I'll take it thanks!! Princess also charge very reasonably for 3rd and 4th guests... Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishywood Posted December 4, 2016 #17 Share Posted December 4, 2016 I understand the deluxe balcony room would only have one upper bunk and one pull out sofa bed Only in Mini-Suites do the sofas have pull out beds. The "sofas" in Deluxe Balcony Cabins--which are really just armless loveseats--do not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zooguy Posted December 4, 2016 #18 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Is price the reason for considering putting 4 people in one cabin? The discomfort and sharing a bath for four would preclude me from making this choice. Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare TracieABD Posted December 4, 2016 #19 Share Posted December 4, 2016 Did they put the beds up during the day- and then pop them down at turndown? If so, I would be fine with that. Also, how old were the two on the top bunks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riclop Posted December 5, 2016 #20 Share Posted December 5, 2016 Those rooms are too small for that option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myfuzzy Posted December 5, 2016 #21 Share Posted December 5, 2016 You said you have always traveled with a group of four, but, you didn't indicate adults, adults/teens, adults/children. When traveling, rooms are only so big, so if you are traveling with a group of four, I would say standard accommodations would be tight no matter if it was a hotel or ship. If price is a factor, well, then pay for what you can afford and accept it. So far any cabin on any ship that holds a bed, is in my price range Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaynors Posted December 5, 2016 Author #22 Share Posted December 5, 2016 Is price the reason for considering putting 4 people in one cabin? The discomfort and sharing a bath for four would preclude me from making this choice. Sent from my iPad using Forums Yes, the main reason is price however we have been cruising with our children since they were 1. Using one bathroom has never been a problem as we just take turns. We have when the price was good gotten two rooms in the past (insides) and having two bathrooms and the extra space is definitely worth something extra, but Princess was offering a very low price for 3/4 passengers when we booked this cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaynors Posted December 5, 2016 Author #23 Share Posted December 5, 2016 (edited) Did they put the beds up during the day- and then pop them down at turndown? If so, I would be fine with that. Also, how old were the two on the top bunks? Yes, the upper bunks were only down at night. However, if the kids were in bed and you wanted to navigate around the room (to get to the balcony or bathroom) it was quite a hazard because of the design of the bunks and the narrowness of the room. Our kids used the bunks, 13 and 15. As I said earlier, we are not big people so no one was hanging off the beds. The size of the bunks was fine (and the kids are used to sleeping on bunks) it was the layout of the room when the bunks were deployed that was the problem. During the day the room was fine. Edited December 5, 2016 by Gaynors Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaynors Posted December 5, 2016 Author #24 Share Posted December 5, 2016 You said you have always traveled with a group of four, but, you didn't indicate adults, adults/teens, adults/children. When traveling, rooms are only so big, so if you are traveling with a group of four, I would say standard accommodations would be tight no matter if it was a hotel or ship. If price is a factor, well, then pay for what you can afford and accept it. So far any cabin on any ship that holds a bed, is in my price range That is true, it was our kids that were traveling with us and they have been on almost 20 cruises with us, and most of the time we have had one room for 4. We have stayed in rooms that have much smaller square footage with no problem. It was the layout of the room I wished I would have seen before we went. If I had seen the pictures I would have spent less money and booked an inside room. We decided to spend the extra money this time for the balcony room. However, when we sail on Princess again (which I'm sure we will because we enjoy their product a lot) we would probably get an inside room or if costs allowed get two rooms (but usually it is cost prohibitive for us but we always check). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billco Posted December 5, 2016 #25 Share Posted December 5, 2016 (edited) After you check out that inside room, the balcony might not look so bad. Edited December 5, 2016 by billco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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