Carnival junkie considering Navigator... help!

[prattmom]

What do I need to know/consider about Royal Caribbean? No idea even where to start picking a cabin! We generally stay in a balcony...

 

Thanks in advance!

[True Texan]

We have #7 cruise in 13 days so you can see we are big on Carnival but we have also cruised on RCCL Voyager and have the Oasis booked 6/13. We have always stayed in balcony rooms. You will find the layout of RCCL different than Carnival but the balconies are the same.

 

We have just looked on the deck plans and picked a few rooms we liked and booked it. The rooms might be a wee bit smaller on RCCL but not enough to make a difference.

 

The food is similar but no chocolate melting cake on RCCL.

 

No matter what you might hear the kind of people are the same on both ships.

[CRUISE4JANE]

I am going through the same thing as you. Cruised only Carnival ships. I was having a problem choosing a cabin at first. Didn't know if I wanted to try a Promenade cabin or not. Booked it and then changed to the Deluxe Oceanview/Balcony cabin on deck 7, midship. I like being close to elevators and convenient to where I will be spending my time. That part is done for me. Good luck to you. :):)

[maxxedout2]

What do I need to know/consider about Royal Caribbean? No idea even where to start picking a cabin! We generally stay in a balcony...

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

Royal ships, as much as I like them, have a serious flaw.

Because of this horrible design error passengers spend

a lot of time walking to a distant elevator/stairwell...even

to go up one deck.

 

The horrendous design problem I am talking about is that

they only have two (2) elevator cores instead of three (3)

elevator cores as most every other cruise line.

 

Anyway, cabins near aft elevators are highly regarded and

book fast on Royal ships.

 

Just my 1/4 peso ($.02).

 

:cool:

[golfer1966]

What do I need to know/consider about Royal Caribbean? No idea even where to start picking a cabin! We generally stay in a balcony...

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

Where were you thinking of sailing to.?? Any ship in mind? Once we know that, we can make a few suggestions maybe.

 

I have only sailed on RCCL, so I cant comment on the comparison between the two lines.

[akcruz]

Where were you thinking of sailing to.?? Any ship in mind? Once we know that, we can make a few suggestions maybe.

 

I have only sailed on RCCL, so I cant comment on the comparison between the two lines.

 

I believe the OP said Navigator.

 

Navigator is one of the Voyager class ships that has the promenade(deck 5 I believe) in the middle of the ship, a 3 level dining room at the back of the ship (decks 3, 4, 5), theatre in the front of the ship (deck 4, 5), studio b, ice skating (deck 3), and of course the pool deck and windjammer (buffet) on deck 11.

 

What I would suggest is figure out where you will be spending most of your time and book a floor that is closer to that level. Balcony cabins are on decks 6 through 10, with 10 being mostly suites.

 

These ships have what some call the "hump", an area of the ship that sticks out further on the side. These cabins are great if you want a front to back view and are close to the elevators. There is a wall between the elevators and these rooms so noise is not an issue. Some others love the aft cabins primarily for the large balconies. Depending on what you enjoy one of these would be the first choice.

 

We have stayed on deck 7, 8 and 9 on the voyager class ships and liked each for a different reason. Truly, there aren't too many balcony cabins that are not good on these ships.

 

If you have some cabins you are looking at there are many people on here that will tell you the pros and cons of each one.

 

Also, as others have said, royal and carnival really are very similar. We prefer the royal ships, but if the price and itinerary was right would not hesitate to book carnival again.

[Tyler80]

Royal ships, as much as I like them, have a serious flaw.

Because of this horrible design error passengers spend

a lot of time walking to a distant elevator/stairwell...even

to go up one deck.

 

The horrendous design problem I am talking about is that

they only have two (2) elevator cores instead of three (3)

elevator cores as most every other cruise line.

 

Anyway, cabins near aft elevators are highly regarded and

book fast on Royal ships.

 

Just my 1/4 peso ($.02).

 

:cool:

 

I've been on 4 Royal Caribbean cruises and have never had a problem with the forward and aft elevator lobbies. It is a walk, but that is something you do on a cruise ship. Royal Caribbean has built all of their Voyager, Freedom and Oasis class ships that way, so the 2 elevator lobby design obviously works for them. Those ships remain some of the most popular.

 

Like others suggested: if you don't want a long walk to your stateroom then make sure you book near an elevator lobby!

[CRUISE4JANE]

Royal ships, as much as I like them, have a serious flaw.

Because of this horrible design error passengers spend

a lot of time walking to a distant elevator/stairwell...even

to go up one deck.

 

The horrendous design problem I am talking about is that

they only have two (2) elevator cores instead of three (3)

elevator cores as most every other cruise line.

 

Anyway, cabins near aft elevators are highly regarded and

book fast on Royal ships.

 

Just my 1/4 peso ($.02).

 

:cool:

 

I understand what you mean. That is one thing I didn't like. Only 2 sets of elevators on a deck. Come on, this is ridiculous. I am 7 cabins away from the elevators. I made sure that everywhere I wanted to go was midship to aft, so booked cabin accordingly. On Carnival, I was like 4 cabins away, so I guess I can walk the extra 3 LOL! I am on deck 7 and hate the fact that Winjammer is on 11 and casino on 4. On Carnival, I only had to go up 2 flights either way. Not on this ship. :mad:

[mrsdoc3]

Balconies are larger is standard cabins on RCCL than on Carnival. Don't know about aft balconies -- I'll be in my first one in December on Navigator.

[Tyler80]

What do I need to know/consider about Royal Caribbean? No idea even where to start picking a cabin! We generally stay in a balcony...

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Picking a stateroom location on Navigator of the Seas will depend on factors that are important to you. Do you:

 

• Want to be close to the Windjammer Buffet or Pools?
  
• Want to be close to the Main Dining Room?
  

 

Remember the ships are large. The Windjammer Buffet is on deck 11, as are the pools. If you book a room on deck 2, you'll have many flights of stairs to climb or you'll be frequently waiting for an elevator. My suggestion to you would be a room on Deck 6. On Deck 6 you're only 1 deck above the Royal Promenade (restaurants and shopping), 1 deck above the top Main Dining Room level, and you're only a few decks above the theater, casino and ice skating rink. If you're in shape then you're only 5 decks below the buffet and pools and if you require an elevator then the wait shouldn't be too long. Enjoy your first Royal Caribbean sailing! ;)

[akcruz]

I understand what you mean. That is one thing I didn't like. Only 2 sets of elevators on a deck. Come on, this is ridiculous. I am 7 cabins away from the elevators. I made sure that everywhere I wanted to go was midship to aft, so booked cabin accordingly. On Carnival, I was like 4 cabins away, so I guess I can walk the extra 3 LOL! I am on deck 7 and hate the fact that Winjammer is on 11 and casino on 4. On Carnival, I only had to go up 2 flights either way. Not on this ship. :mad:

 

Hopefully this doesn't sound rude, but if you didn't want to have so many decks to "navigate" why did you book a ship the size of Navigator? Sounds like a smaller ship is more to your liking? Pick a deck closest to where you will spend most of your time and for the rest use the elevators or stairs.

 

We have sailed on 3 Voyager class, 1 Freedom and 1 Oasis class and never had issues with getting an elevator other than when a show let out or when everyone is trying to get on or off the ship. IMO the fact that there are less elevators, while it could be an issue in some cases, is being blown way out of proportion. I prefer this to having to go up a deck and back down on some of the Carnival ships to get from one end of a deck to another :rolleyes:.

[CRUISE4JANE]

Ice Skating Rink is on Deck 2 not 3.. I just printed out my list of where everything is. I do agree with you as to the cabins. I am on deck 7, midship, close to elevators because mostly everything I am interested in is mid to aft, up or down decks. :)

[CRUISE4JANE]

Hopefully this doesn't sound rude, but if you didn't want to have so many decks to "navigate" why did you book a ship the size of Navigator? Sounds like a smaller ship is more to your liking? Pick a deck closest to where you will spend most of your time and for the rest use the elevators or stairs.

 

We have sailed on 3 Voyager class, 1 Freedom and 1 Oasis class and never had issues with getting an elevator other than when a show let out or when everyone is trying to get on or off the ship. IMO the fact that there are less elevators, while it could be an issue in some cases, is being blown way out of proportion. I prefer this to having to go up a deck and back down on some of the Carnival ships to get from one end of a deck to another :rolleyes:.

 

No, I don't think you are rude. You are just asking a simple question. The reason I am going on the Navigator is because it is coming to N.O. and yes, I am tired of Carnival ships for now. Even though they had more elevators, pretty much, they passed up my deck or were very slow. Therefore, we used the stairs a lot. Last two cruises were the Conquest. First was the Inspiration which I had no clue how to navigate around a ship. Took a few days to figure where everything was. I realize that the NOS is larger so I am doing my research beforehand so that I will know in my mind where everything is before I even step on the ship. Like I said in another post, most of things I will be doing is mid-aft, so I have a cabin close to elevators that are to the mid-aft area. :)

[GSuitesailing]

Welcome to the RCI boards. I think you will be surprised at how quickly you will learn to navigate the Navigator! I would think booking toward the aft elevators would be your best bet.

[prattmom]

Thanks for the input! Anything else I should know?

 

:)

[138east]

Keep your deck 7 cabin. The Library area is better than the Crown & Anchor area or the Internet area. Maybe someone can post about the deck 6 balconies. Are they metal or plexiglass?

[ORD1166]

What do I need to know/consider about Royal Caribbean? No idea even where to start picking a cabin! We generally stay in a balcony...

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

Prattmom,

 

Weclome, here is a web site for you to check out. It is all about the Voyager class ships. http://www.voyager-class.com/ This web site shows the pictures of all five voyager class ships and also, all the different room class types. I think you will find Royal has much too offer. Have fun and enjoy your cruise.

[bartelbee]

Navigator is a great ship--it's hard to book a bad balcony. We prefer the far aft cabins for sailing up/down river, and judging by availability, we're not alone. It's a longer walk, and we have experienced occasional soot problems but the larger size balcony and view are well worth any inconvenience. Loved sailing out of Falmouth with the sun setting over the hill and seeing the ships we passed on the Mississippi. Our second favorite location is the hump (where the ship bumps out by the aft elevators) primarily because it's so easy to get places.

In doing your research, I'm sure all this will be mentioned but make sure you check out the ice show (it's amazing what they can do on that small rink at sea,) the helipad at night (the view of the sea and sky is amazing, especially when re-entering the river,) the solarium (adults only swimming) and the promenade for late night snacks.

We used to sail Carnival as well, but after our first Royal cruise, we've never gone back.

[mo&fran]

I understand what you mean. That is one thing I didn't like. Only 2 sets of elevators on a deck. Come on, this is ridiculous. I am 7 cabins away from the elevators. I made sure that everywhere I wanted to go was midship to aft, so booked cabin accordingly. On Carnival, I was like 4 cabins away, so I guess I can walk the extra 3 LOL! I am on deck 7 and hate the fact that Winjammer is on 11 and casino on 4. On Carnival, I only had to go up 2 flights either way. Not on this ship. :mad:

There are 4 sets of elevators on these ships, port and starboard, fore and aft.

[mrsdoc3]

Prattmom,

 

Weclome, here is a web site for you to check out. It is all about the Voyager class ships. http://www.voyager-class.com/ This web site shows the pictures of all five voyager class ships and also, all the different room class types. I think you will find Royal has much too offer. Have fun and enjoy your cruise.

 

Thanks for this web site. I was able to see what my aft balcony looks like. I'm almost to double digits, and I'm getting excited. There's nothing like walking onto a ship to make me smile.