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Britannia Aft Suites & Cabins


Selbourne
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We have cruised on Britannia twice and on both occasions had a forward facing suite. We loved the large panoramic forward facing window and position the two armchairs from the lounge in front of it to give us our own private Crows Nest. It's also great seeing the approach to ports in the morning from your bed!

 

There are 3 disadvantages to these suites. They are a distance from the forward lifts (and my wife uses a wheelchair so it's a pain squeezing past servicing trolleys), on one cruise (summer Med) we were disturbed a few nights by noisey crew members in the early hours outside in the crew area right at the front of the ship and, most significantly, the balcony is very shallow (as are all side balconies).

 

The main run of suites along the sides of the ship don't appeal as you don't get the spectacle of a panoramic forward or aft view, the balconies are the same depth and width as those at the front and you are likely to get noise from passing pedestrian traffic late at night and also kids running past (which sounds like thunder!) as its a school holiday cruise.

 

So, for next Summer, we have decided to have a change and have booked an aft corner suite with large wrap around balcony, plus the adjacent aft cabin for our daughters. We would have preferred a location between B and D deck but only one was left - F deck.

 

Having read some earlier comments on here (dangerous, I know), I am wondering if I might have made a mistake and would be particularly grateful if those who have used a rear facing suite or balcony cabin on Britannia could answer the following;

 

1) We deliberately avoided G deck as it is directly above the Live Lounge but have since read some reviews that noise disturbance from here can be experienced at all levels. One I read was from a passenger on B deck! I can live with noise on the balcony from rehearsals during the day, but we tend to be in bed by midnight and are concerned that we might be kept awake. How loud will the late night sound be on F deck and what's the latest time it goes on until?

 

2) Althouh it doesn't really make it clear on the deck plans, I have since noticed from a photo that the public deck outside the Live Lounge goes right under the aft corner suites. Is there ever a late night noise problem from rowdy passengers in this area and, if you are above the smoking side, can you smell it from your balcony two levels up?

 

3) I note that some suite passengers talk about having 'parties' on their large rear balconies. Has anyone at the rear been disturbed late by noise from large numbers of guests on another balcony? Drinks prior to dinner wouldn't bother me at all, but late night revellers would.

 

4) I've read lots about the soot issue. This worries me far less than the risk of noise or cigarette smells, but am I correct in thinking that the one advantage of a lower aft suite would be less soot than the higher levels?

 

Thanks in anticipation.

Edited by Selbourne
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we had E742 last tear no problems at all we have booked b726 for the caribean they are the best suites we have ever had with p&o

 

Thanks. We will be a deck lower, so closer to the Live Lounge, but that's reassuring that you experienced no issues.

 

Very keen to hear from others who have cruised in aft cabins and suites on Britannia (especially on F deck) in relation to the specific concerns raised in my original post.

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We had an aft corner suite summer 2015 on c deck. We really like the layout of the cabin - with the balcony going round the side and two entrances to the cabin. I think the lay out is slightly different on deck F because the double doors from the bedroom are in a different position. You could hear noise from the live lounge in the cabin but not on the balcony - but it was at a very very low level. Soot was only a problem on two days (when it was really bad - big chunks of it!) The thing that made us think that we might not book these cabins again was the vibration in the cabin - which seemed to be the worse than any other ships we have sailed on. Perhaps in was something to do with the route we were taking ( to the canaries). Hope this is helpful

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We've had 2 aft corner suites C736 in May 2015 & B726 2 weeks ago.

 

We've never had any problems with noise from the shows or other passengers on their balconies. The only noise / vibrations you get are when the ship is docking.

 

As someone else has hinted at, the layout of the F & D deck aft suites are different due to the position of the balcony doors.

 

We'd book another aft suite again without hesitation.

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We've had 2 aft corner suites C736 in May 2015 & B726 2 weeks ago.

 

We've never had any problems with noise from the shows or other passengers on their balconies. The only noise / vibrations you get are when the ship is docking.

 

As someone else has hinted at, the layout of the F & D deck aft suites are different due to the position of the balcony doors.

 

We'd book another aft suite again without hesitation.

We got what I thought were excessive vibrations when the ship was at sea - not just docking ( which you would expect). As I suggested above, it perhaps varies depending on speed, weather conditions etc. We were perhaps unlucky.

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Just booked suit on Britannia for Feb 2017 after having free upgrade last year to suit b726 first time in suit can any one tell me if you get earlier booking for premium seats on plane first post sixth cruise thanks devonkev

 

 

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We have cruised on Britannia twice and on both occasions had a forward facing suite. We loved the large panoramic forward facing window and position the two armchairs from the lounge in front of it to give us our own private Crows Nest. It's also great seeing the approach to ports in the morning from your bed!

 

There are 3 disadvantages to these suites. They are a distance from the forward lifts (and my wife uses a wheelchair so it's a pain squeezing past servicing trolleys), on one cruise (summer Med) we were disturbed a few nights by noisey crew members in the early hours outside in the crew area right at the front of the ship and, most significantly, the balcony is very shallow (as are all side balconies).

 

The main run of suites along the sides of the ship don't appeal as you don't get the spectacle of a panoramic forward or aft view, the balconies are the same depth and width as those at the front and you are likely to get noise from passing pedestrian traffic late at night and also kids running past (which sounds like thunder!) as its a school holiday cruise.

 

So, for next Summer, we have decided to have a change and have booked an aft corner suite with large wrap around balcony, plus the adjacent aft cabin for our daughters. We would have preferred a location between B and D deck but only one was left - F deck.

 

Having read some earlier comments on here (dangerous, I know), I am wondering if I might have made a mistake and would be particularly grateful if those who have used a rear facing suite or balcony cabin on Britannia could answer the following;

 

1) We deliberately avoided G deck as it is directly above the Live Lounge but have since read some reviews that noise disturbance from here can be experienced at all levels. One I read was from a passenger on B deck! I can live with noise on the balcony from rehearsals during the day, but we tend to be in bed by midnight and are concerned that we might be kept awake. How loud will the late night sound be on F deck and what's the latest time it goes on until?

 

2) Althouh it doesn't really make it clear on the deck plans, I have since noticed from a photo that the public deck outside the Live Lounge goes right under the aft corner suites. Is there ever a late night noise problem from rowdy passengers in this area and, if you are above the smoking side, can you smell it from your balcony two levels up?

 

3) I note that some suite passengers talk about having 'parties' on their large rear balconies. Has anyone at the rear been disturbed late by noise from large numbers of guests on another balcony? Drinks prior to dinner wouldn't bother me at all, but late night revellers would.

 

4) I've read lots about the soot issue. This worries me far less than the risk of noise or cigarette smells, but am I correct in thinking that the one advantage of a lower aft suite would be less soot than the higher levels?

 

Thanks in anticipation.

 

 

We had B702 last year (one on the port side) but decided this year to have a rear Suite, namely B724 which is one overlooking the wake, right in the centre, with a deep balcony, so we can certainly give you some help with your queries:-

 

1. We never experienced any problems with noise from the Live Lounge. The music here ends around midnight so if you do hear anything it won't continue after that time.

 

2. When we had B702 last year we were above the deck area next to the Live Lounge. There was never any large scale noise from there, but there certainly were people out talking and, because we were on the port side, smoking, and, although we were a long way up, the smoke did waft up. It doesn't overly bother me, but my husband didn't like it. IMO it would not be a major problem.

 

3. We have seen 'parties' given in near by Suites. In fact one of the Suites just below us and to the right (a corner one) on our last cruise had a 'do' on the last formal night - it was no problem at all. The ones we have seen have never been late, always pre-dinner, and low key. Canape and Champagne given out by the Butler to a smallish number of guests. I would be extremely surprised if you experienced a problem.

 

4. The soot. Yes, you get it; you wipe it up with one of the blue towels - not the white ones! - and enjoy the balcony! I would be surprised if it bothers you unduly on F deck. We were on B deck and there was, at times, quite a lot of it. It tends to be more prevalent in the mornings when it has had all night to settle, plus the ship is usually going a bit faster at night and therefore puts out more soot. It really wasn't much of a problem during the day. We didn't let it bother us and enjoyed our holiday!

 

Hope this helps. :)

 

 

PS. Funnily enough we've wanted to try a front Suite - could you give a description of what they're like as you can hardly find anything on them on the internet!

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We had B702 last year (one on the port side) but decided this year to have a rear Suite, namely B724 which is one overlooking the wake, right in the centre, with a deep balcony, so we can certainly give you some help with your queries:-

 

1. We never experienced any problems with noise from the Live Lounge. The music here ends around midnight so if you do hear anything it won't continue after that time.

 

2. When we had B702 last year we were above the deck area next to the Live Lounge. There was never any large scale noise from there, but there certainly were people out talking and, because we were on the port side, smoking, and, although we were a long way up, the smoke did waft up. It doesn't overly bother me, but my husband didn't like it. IMO it would not be a major problem.

 

3. We have seen 'parties' given in near by Suites. In fact one of the Suites just below us and to the right (a corner one) on our last cruise had a 'do' on the last formal night - it was no problem at all. The ones we have seen have never been late, always pre-dinner, and low key. Canape and Champagne given out by the Butler to a smallish number of guests. I would be extremely surprised if you experienced a problem.

 

4. The soot. Yes, you get it; you wipe it up with one of the blue towels - not the white ones! - and enjoy the balcony! I would be surprised if it bothers you unduly on F deck. We were on B deck and there was, at times, quite a lot of it. It tends to be more prevalent in the mornings when it has had all night to settle, plus the ship is usually going a bit faster at night and therefore puts out more soot. It really wasn't much of a problem during the day. We didn't let it bother us and enjoyed our holiday!

 

Hope this helps. :)

 

 

PS. Funnily enough we've wanted to try a front Suite - could you give a description of what they're like as you can hardly find anything on them on the internet!

 

Thank you so much for answering each of my questions and to other posters for addressing some of them. I'd still be extremely interested to have the same questions answered by anyone who has stayed in F730.

 

I've just checked my Horizon's from our last Britannia cruise and noticed that the late disco in the Live Lounge doesn't even start until various times between 11pm and midnight, so if there is a noise disturbance it will most definitely go on until the early hours of the morning. Again, if anyone has been in F730 and can assure me that it's not enough to keep you awake I would be extremely grateful as this is concerning me.

 

Interesting to read that you could smell cigarette smoke as high up as B deck, but I note that you were in a side suite right above where the smokers tend to congregate (nearest the door). Again, very keen to know if you can smell smoke from the balcony of F730 given that it is further away from this area, albeit still above an area that people can smoke in, as I would dislike that intensely.

 

I'm reassured that any suite balcony parties are pre dinner drinks rather than inconsiderate late night noise and am now reassured by the responses. The soot issue sounds like an inconvenience but not (on F deck at least) a show stopper.

 

Interested to hear the comments re excessive vibration at the rear. Not sure what to make of that as I don't know if it would disturb sleep. I remember dining in 17 (now Epicurean) one night on Azura and everything was rattling!

 

If nobody on here has stayed in F730 perhaps someone has stayed in G732. All of the issues I am concerned about would be worse in G732 (if at all), so if they aren't a problem on G deck then they shouldn't be on F deck. This would give a useful perspective alongside the positive feedback from the person who stayed in E742 (for which I was grateful).

 

Regarding the question about front suites. These are the only ones we have stayed in so can't really compare and contrast. They do however have significantly larger bedrooms that the other suites. To give you some idea, the King Size bed takes up less than a quarter of the space, albeit the ceiling slopes down on one side. We take the two armchairs from the lounge (leaving the sofa) which makes that area spacious and create our own private Crows Nest using the large panoramic forward facing window. It is also possible to watch arrivals into ports from your bed. The suites are very quiet, other than a few nights in the summer cruise when rowdy crew members were outside in the crew area (at the very front of the ship) in the early hours and woke us up. The biggest negative of these suites is the balcony, which is very shallow (you have to sit at an angle) and is shaded quite a lot of the time by the bridge which overhangs above it. Hope that helps but feel free to ask anything else.

 

So, finally, a further call for past passengers from F730 or G732 to answer my specific questions as others have kindly done for higher decks.

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The music won't keep you awake in f730 unless you are a very, very light sleeper. We had a quick peek in to this suite on the last day when everyone had left (cabin steward said it was ok) and it looked really lovely. Generally it is a really quiet part of the ship, being at the back and there isn't a lot of people going past. Other parts of the ship were noisy apparently, but we had no issues at all.

 

Just remember that it is a long walk to the lifts.

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The music won't keep you awake in f730 unless you are a very, very light sleeper. We had a quick peek in to this suite on the last day when everyone had left (cabin steward said it was ok) and it looked really lovely. Generally it is a really quiet part of the ship, being at the back and there isn't a lot of people going past. Other parts of the ship were noisy apparently, but we had no issues at all.

 

Just remember that it is a long walk to the lifts.

 

Thanks Presto2. I am a light sleeper but your comments are most reassuring. I am 50/50 about switching to one of the front suites that we like, but my wife and two grown up daughters would like to stick with the aft suite and adjoining cabin for the better balconies.

 

Out of interest, did you feel that the vibrations when at sea (as mentioned by another respondent) were problematic on F deck? I hadn't really considered that. Quite used to noise and vibration from thrusters when manoeuvring in and out of ports, but constant vibration at sea would be tiresome.

 

Interesting that you say the aft suites and cabins are a long walk to the lift as the deck plans don't give that impression. It looks considerably less distance to the rear lifts than the walk from the suites at the front of the ship to the front lifts.

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Thanks Presto2. I am a light sleeper but your comments are most reassuring. I am 50/50 about switching to one of the front suites that we like, but my wife and two grown up daughters would like to stick with the aft suite and adjoining cabin for the better balconies.

 

Out of interest, did you feel that the vibrations when at sea (as mentioned by another respondent) were problematic on F deck? I hadn't really considered that. Quite used to noise and vibration from thrusters when manoeuvring in and out of ports, but constant vibration at sea would be tiresome.

 

Interesting that you say the aft suites and cabins are a long walk to the lift as the deck plans don't give that impression. It looks considerably less distance to the rear lifts than the walk from the suites at the front of the ship to the front lifts.

 

Hi, I mentioned the walk as people tended to moan about it when Britannia first set sail. I suppose it wasn't as far as on the Celebrity Silhouette which was a real trek :-)

We didn't notice too much vibration .. just a tiny, tiny, tiny bit at sea I suppose, but we had this on the Celebrity Silhouette as well but worse. To be honest I hardly even think about it - hence the tiny, tiny, tiny - and we just LOVED F729. It was noisy when docking but you know that, but if we sailed on Britannia again we would most definitely book this cabin again with no worries at all. We've seen the cabin you booked and it looks fab and the view of the wake of the ship is stunning.

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You might want to look the visitor posts on the P&O Facebook page - there is one about the noise from the live lounge in an aft suite. You might be able to message the person who made the post to find out which one it was.

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You might want to look the visitor posts on the P&O Facebook page - there is one about the noise from the live lounge in an aft suite. You might be able to message the person who made the post to find out which one it was.

 

Thanks. I found the post but the person doesn't state which level they were on. They might have been on G deck immediately above the Live Lounge (which I would think is subject to excessive noise) but of course they could have been higher. I don't use Facebook so can't pursue.

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we had E742 last tear no problems at all we have booked b726 for the caribean they are the best suites we have ever had with p&o

 

Thanks. I note that your cabin was on the Port (smoking) side as ours is. Could you smell cigarettes when on your balcony from people using the smoking area outside the Live Lounge, as I see that it extends to the area under the side part of the aft corner suites?

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Out of interest, did you feel that the vibrations when at sea (as mentioned by another respondent) were problematic on F deck? I hadn't really considered that. Quite used to noise and vibration from thrusters when manoeuvring in and out of ports, but constant vibration at sea would be tiresome.

 

Interesting that you say the aft suites and cabins are a long walk to the lift as the deck plans don't give that impression. It looks considerably less distance to the rear lifts than the walk from the suites at the front of the ship to the front lifts.

 

Hi again,

 

You do get strong vibrations when the ship is arriving in port, but not otherwise. In fact Britannia is one of the best ships at sea that we've been on - she seems to glide! Mind you, we didn't have any rough seas.:rolleyes:

 

The aft Suites are NOT far from the lifts and rear stairs. They are extremely close! The centre lifts are a long way off in comparison, and the front stairs and lifts are miles away - a hell of a walk to breakfast! (Worth it though! :))

 

 

Thanks for the description of the front Suites. We'd be fine with the balcony, having had a side one at the back, but are all the balconies in shade. Looking at the plan you would think that lower front Suites wouldn't be so badly affected?

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Not sure if this helps but we've been on D deck aft on Azura and never heard anything in Manhatten although some people on E deck have done. So not sure if this would be similar on Friday deck Britannia? We'll be on E deck Britannia in December 😎

 

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Many thanks to all those who have responded so far - please continue to add if you have any more feedback.

 

I now feel more reassured about the noise from the Live Lounge, balcony 'parties', soot and vibration.

 

The one big outstanding question is regarding disturbance (fumes or noise) from smokers using the outside deck alongside the Live Lounge port side.

 

So, if anyone has stayed in one of the PORT side aft corner suites (B726 / C736 / D738 / E742 or F730) on Britannia, or perhaps one of the side balcony cabins adjacent to them, could you please let me know whether you could smell cigarette fumes from your balcony and whether or not you were disturbed late at night by smokers in this area making noise.

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Thanks. I found the post but the person doesn't state which level they were on. They might have been on G deck immediately above the Live Lounge (which I would think is subject to excessive noise) but of course they could have been higher. I don't use Facebook so can't pursue.

I asked the poster which room had noise from the live lounge and it was B724!

This is an aft suite but not a corner one.

Incidentally I stand by my comment above that I though the vibration in the our room on c deck was bad compared to other ships I have been on. However, others have said that there wasn't bad vibration when they sailed, so I wonder if there was some sort of temporary problem on our cruise (perhaps with the engines)?

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I asked the poster which room had noise from the live lounge and it was B724!

This is an aft suite but not a corner one.

Incidentally I stand by my comment above that I though the vibration in the our room on c deck was bad compared to other ships I have been on. However, others have said that there wasn't bad vibration when they sailed, so I wonder if there was some sort of temporary problem on our cruise (perhaps with the engines)?

 

Many thanks for finding that out for me - very kind of you.

 

That's the 2nd person I've heard of who complained about noise from the Live Lounge as high up as B deck which is odd when others on F and even G deck have said it wasn't a problem. All very confusing. I wonder if noise on B deck comes from above (sailaways etc) as its close to public areas rather than the Live Lounge, although I doubt that's the source of late night noise.

 

Still undecided. Answers to the port side smoking questions (noise and fumes from the smoking area outside Live Lounge) posted earlier could be the decider.

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Many thanks to all those who have responded so far - please continue to add if you have any more feedback.

 

I now feel more reassured about the noise from the Live Lounge, balcony 'parties', soot and vibration.

 

The one big outstanding question is regarding disturbance (fumes or noise) from smokers using the outside deck alongside the Live Lounge port side.

 

So, if anyone has stayed in one of the PORT side aft corner suites (B726 / C736 / D738 / E742 or F730) on Britannia, or perhaps one of the side balcony cabins adjacent to them, could you please let me know whether you could smell cigarette fumes from your balcony and whether or not you were disturbed late at night by smokers in this area making noise.

 

In F729 we were right by the side of F730 and at no time did we smell even a small wiff of smoke ... and I really, really hate cigarette smoke and can sniff it out at 100 yards !

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In F729 we were right by the side of F730 and at no time did we smell even a small wiff of smoke ... and I really, really hate cigarette smoke and can sniff it out at 100 yards !

 

Thanks, but F729 is next to F731 (the opposite side of the ship to ours) and both are on the Starboard (non smoking side), so you wouldn't have experienced any issues.

 

Like you, I can smell a cigarette at 100 yards and it spoilt the enjoyment of several balconies on cruises prior to the ban. I hadn't given it much thought until I noticed on a photo that the smoking area outside the Live Lounge extends under the sides of the port corner suites.

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Thanks, but F729 is next to F731 (the opposite side of the ship to ours) and both are on the Starboard (non smoking side), so you wouldn't have experienced any issues.

 

Like you, I can smell a cigarette at 100 yards and it spoilt the enjoyment of several balconies on cruises prior to the ban. I hadn't given it much thought until I noticed on a photo that the smoking area outside the Live Lounge extends under the sides of the port corner suites.

 

Sorry, I took it for granted that you were by the side of us. It may have been one of the reasons we booked that side. Is the other side available?

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