Room options for family of 6 on RCI EOS

[rm1247]

I just booked a 5 night Bermuda cruise for my family for next May (kids ages 13,11, 6, and a baby), on RCI Explorer of the Seas. We did a 9-day Caribbean Cruise on EOS last fall and all had a great time. I'm expecting our 4th child soon, which is why we need to put off our next cruise until next year. The idea of cruising with a baby, and working around naps, presents a whole new set of issues. Right now I want to get the rooms right so that I can focus on the other details later.

 

I booked 2 rooms - a JS aft and a D1 Balcony (Deck 10) that are connecting. The total cost is more than I'd like, so I hope I made the right choice. The Royal Family Suite was almost the same price, but I thought perhaps there was more chance that the JS and D1 would come down in price. The aft rooms look wonderful with great options for relaxing while the baby sleeps. We definitely want at least one balcony room, but should I have looked into the balcony & interior connecting rooms instead? We had 2 standard connecting rooms last time and found the space to be adequate, but with a baby I'm anticipating needing more room. Are there other options that I didn't consider?

 

And while I'm at it, can anyone answer these questions:

 

1. It looks like the railing on the JS aft is just bars. If my baby is crawling, will she be able to fit through those bars?

 

2. Can the balcony barriers be removed between the connecting rooms?

 

3. Will the long trip down the hallway to the aft rooms be annoying with running the kids to AO, etc.?

 

4. Am I correct that the prices will probably drop on the JS & D1, if I watch them closely enough?

 

Thanks so much for your help! :)

[beachchick]

I'll answer what I can inside your post; hope that's okay.

 

I just booked a 5 night Bermuda cruise for my family for next May (kids ages 13,11, 6, and a baby), on RCI Explorer of the Seas. We did a 9-day Caribbean Cruise on EOS last fall and all had a great time. I'm expecting our 4th child soon, which is why we need to put off our next cruise until next year. The idea of cruising with a baby, and working around naps, presents a whole new set of issues. Right now I want to get the rooms right so that I can focus on the other details later.

 

I booked 2 rooms - a JS aft and a D1 Balcony (Deck 10) that are connecting. The total cost is more than I'd like, so I hope I made the right choice. The Royal Family Suite was almost the same price, but I thought perhaps there was more chance that the JS and D1 would come down in price. The aft rooms look wonderful with great options for relaxing while the baby sleeps. We definitely want at least one balcony room, but should I have looked into the balcony & interior connecting rooms instead? We had 2 standard connecting rooms last time and found the space to be adequate, but with a baby I'm anticipating needing more room. Are there other options that I didn't consider?

 

And while I'm at it, can anyone answer these questions:

 

1. It looks like the railing on the JS aft is just bars. If my baby is crawling, will she be able to fit through those bars?

 

I don't know, but I doubt it because there are requirements about how close together the bars have to be. However, I would ask someone to actually measure and find out.

 

2. Can the balcony barriers be removed between the connecting rooms?

 

None of the balcony partitions can be removed on Explorer because the balconies were built into the hull. (On certain RCI ships, the partitions can be removed on side balconies, but not on fully aft balconies because they are solid built-in metal.)

 

3. Will the long trip down the hallway to the aft rooms be annoying with running the kids to AO, etc.?

 

Only you can decide that. I don't think so because we consider it part the exercise onboard that allows us to have an extra drink or perhaps a special dessert.

 

4. Am I correct that the prices will probably drop on the JS & D1, if I watch them closely enough?

 

Probably? Not really. Possibly? Sure. There is absolutely no way to know if they will drop on your specific cruise.

 

Thanks so much for your help! :)

 

I know you didn't ask, but if the fare is the same for the RFS that would be our choice. It may or may not have any fare decreases (and it may or may not be more likely to happen with one or both of the JS and D1), but the setup of the RFS is great for a family with children. There are perks with the suite as well, although we don't consider those to be a big factor in the decision.

 

Hope you have a great time, regardless.

 

beachchick

[Marie51]

I cannot speak about the Explorer but we have been on Mariner in 1392 & 1394 which are a JS and balcony connecting at the back of the ship. There were bars on the balcony instead of a solid structure, so yes, a crawling baby could get through the rails. I don't know about removing the balcony dividers as we didn't want to do that. I booked those cabins 15 months in advance and the prices only went up. Yes, it is a long walk to the back of the ship but it did not bother us.

One nice thing was that the jr suite has a tub for bathing the baby. And the balconies are huge. I would love to have those cabins again.

[gerif]

All things considered, I'd definitely pick the RFS - you get a really big balcony, all the suite perks (maybe the 13 year old could watch the others for an hour so you could enjoy a couple of drinks in the conscierge lounge), and a lot more privacy.

[musik07]

I've stayed in the RFS on the explorer. I don't know where our pictures are (this was probably 7-8 years ago I was in middle school). The walk wasn't that bad. We had a small bedroom that my brother and I were in (it had two twins and two pull down bunks) then we had our own typical bathroom. MY parents were in the master bedroom which had a bathroom with a tub and then the living room was pretty large and had a pull out sofa. You would be able to fit a crib in the living room no problem. You would have tons of room to spare too! The balcony is also huge and I am pretty sure the room came with a DVD player and a good stereo system and two TV's which would be nice for entertaining kids. I don't know about the connecting rooms but that is my experience with the RFS.

[rm1247]

Thanks, everyone. When I made the reservations 2 days ago all 4 RFS were still available, so I'm going to discuss this with my husband to see if we should change it. The extra room would be nice, but the cost is still higher than what we'd like to pay. =( I'm not sure we'd keep the current reservations if the prices don't come down.