ROYAL Princess - no Central Staircase a Royal Pain

[coolcagolfer]

Being on Royal for past three days, I could have dealt well enough without mid ship stairs, but for part of the day Sunday none of the mid ship elevators would go to level 16. They would go up to 15 then back down. Having the stairs would have offset the non-functional elevators.

[antsp]

Not to worry too much ... turn out the balcony cabins aren't much of a balcony cabin either :eek:

Just a sliding door with a ledge :confused:

 

Last year on the Crown I watched a film on muts called "Man on a ledge" maybe that's where Princess got there idea from.

[jollyjones]

No proper promenade deck.

 

No central staircase (I absolutely do not have patience to wait for elevators).

 

No OV cabins so I get screwed for full 100% solo supplement for doors and a ledge (usually 65% supplement for OV cabins, I'm too claustrophobic for interiors).

 

No sailing on the Royal for me.

 

Which is a shame because a lot of the features, especially the atrium, sound wonderful but I'm not paying more money than usual to do without things that are important to me.

[Iamcruzin]

Originally when I booked this ship I booked mid ship on deck 11 near the panoramic lifts. It was the most expensive interior cabin. I never noticed on the deck plans that here weren't any stair ways in that location. I prefer to walk up and down stairs rather than wait for the crowded mid ship lifts. I ended up canceling this cruise but now I know that I need to book forward or aft to be closer to the stairs. At least I will save some money as those rooms were less than the one I booked.

[Iamcruzin]

Yup. That's why I booked an inside for the first time in years for my September 2014 Royal cruise. The difference between the best inside and the lowest balcony was over $2,000. I couldn't justify spending that much more.

Pam I am looking forward to your review. I hope you plan on writing one. I was booked in the best inside before I canceled and I am wondering what the room is like for a future booking. I am also wondering how M.U.T.S will be since there doesn't seem to be an escape from it at the main pool. I may have to stick with the Grand Class ships that have a separate pool for M.U.T.S if there are reports of it being too loud on the Royal.

[Cauzneffct]

I don't think I would like that. I usually use the stairs between 5, 6, and 7. I sure noticed the difference on the Grand.

 

There's still the atrium stairs to get between 5 and 7. But yeah, otherwise, its a pain if you're on anything above 7.

[Cauzneffct]

What a Royal Pain (no pun intended) that will be...

 

Fairly certain you intended the pun. But yes, the lack of a mid-ship stairway is a pain.

[runnerodb83]

There's still the atrium stairs to get between 5 and 7. But yeah, otherwise, its a pain if you're on anything above 7.

 

Meaning all the passenger cabins? As someone else noted:

-the aft elevator bank is very close to the stern, thus exacerbating this issue.

-there are 1000 more passengers than the grand which is marred by the same design defect

-the promenade deck permitted for a quick "bypass" to get from front to back in the evenings when corridors were crowded due to shows etc.

 

oh well, keep the regal and royal in the atlantic, we'll keep the golden grand and star in the pacific :)

[Rick-cruiser]

We very often book a restricted view on deck 8 midship, very handy to nip down one flight of stairs to all the evening action. By not having this full stairwell what has Princess actually achieved.

 

Good point, antsp.. Just to nip (or "zip") up / down one deck between deck 8 and 7, you'd have to walk all the way to the front or back of the ship, and then BACK to the middle.. *OR*, if you waited for an elevator... when one finally does arrive in the direction you want to go (just to go down one deck), more often than not it will already be full of people.... since there is not the option for taking the stairs in that part of the ship.. Those elevators will be VERY popular, and very heavily used.. Lots of waiting, and mass gatherings at elevators.. Crazy, I know.

 

 

Fairly certain you intended the pun. But yes, the lack of a mid-ship stairway is a pain.

 

You're actually right..... (but shhhhh....that'll be our little secret)

 

- Rick

 

.

[chamima]

We usually book an aft cabin so this most likely won't affect us but I have to tell everyone that a large mall near our home actually eliminated the central stairs in a "modernization" several years ago.

Now you have to wait for an elevator to go up (or down) only one floor and hope there aren't a bunch of people with strollers who need it at the same time. Makes no sense to me but there must be some kind of reason.

I know I'm only in the mall a short time, not as long as one would be on a cruise but I'm pointing this out to say that maybe there's some kind of reason that we don't know.

:confused: ... :confused: ... :confused:

[Cruzin-K]

No proper promenade deck.

 

No central staircase (I absolutely do not have patience to wait for elevators).

 

No OV cabins so I get screwed for full 100% solo supplement for doors and a ledge (usually 65% supplement for OV cabins, I'm too claustrophobic for interiors).

 

No sailing on the Royal for me.

 

Which is a shame because a lot of the features, especially the atrium, sound wonderful but I'm not paying more money than usual to do without things that are important to me.

 

I agree completely, for all the reasons you listed. No Royal for me either. I am sailing solo in a midship oceanview on the CB in December for just over $1000 for a week, and I will have $200 in OBC to spend. I will be able to step out of my cabin and go up or down the stairs to wherever I want to go. My plan is to never see the inside of an elevator all week long. With three sea days, I will be doing many laps around the ship on the promenade deck. I have no desire now, to sail on the Royal. I agree that it's a shame, but the cost isn't worth the negatives of this ship, for me. No matter, there are plenty of others :D

[Darcy15]

I won't be booking the Royal any time soon because of this issue. I book midship cabins, and much prefer the stairs to the elevators.

 

My one cruise on the Grand was a real pain because of the lack of central stairs - and I won't book that ship again either.

 

I'll stick to the beautiful Diamond and Sapphire I think - lovely ships! :)

[45028]

Hello: I am looking at The Grand diagram in 2013/14 cruise book & diagram on Princess website & am seeing central staircase. Has it disappeared or been closed off?:confused:

[Darcy15]

Hello: I am looking at The Grand diagram in 2013/14 cruise book & diagram on Princess website & am seeing central staircase. Has it disappeared or been closed off?:confused:

 

 

It's closed off with locked doors. Crew are able to use the stairs if necessary I believe.

 

I found it to be a real pain :(

[TorontoTL]

Hello: I am looking at The Grand diagram in 2013/14 cruise book & diagram on Princess website & am seeing central staircase. Has it disappeared or been closed off?:confused:

 

The central staircase is open to passengers between the 5th to 7th decks, but closed to passengers from above the 7th deck.

[capriccio]

 

One thing not mentioned so far is that due to the increased size of the central atrium both the forward and aft staircases are not that far from the atrium.

 

This was posted on one of the other 'complaining threads' in relation to the the lack of a central stairway -- I found it interesting because no one else has pointed this out.

 

Having the time and money to cruise is a wonderful thing -- no one is forcing you to cruise on a ship you've already decided is not for you. Fortunately there are plenty of other Princess (and non-Princess) ships out there to chose from. Happy cruising wherever you go and on whatever ship you travel!

[RunnerGirl26.2]

No proper promenade deck.

 

No central staircase.

 

No OV cabins.

 

 

I agree with these points. This is one of the only posts I have read mentioning the lack of OV cabins. I have sailed Interior, OV, and balcony. While a balcony is nice, I would rather pay less and stay in an OV room (light and a bit more space than an inside). I do not like being "forced" into paying more for a balcony cabin or having to "settle" for an inside IF we choose to sail on the Royal or Regal.

 

We like to stay mid ship and would miss that central stair. On CB this January would pop down one level (Emerald deck cabin obstructed OV) to the bar to get soda and run back up to the cabin. No time at all to do this with the central staircase.

[CI66774]

The great thing about life is we have so many choices. If one thing doesn't suit our tastes, there's always something else that will!

[Clutterlady]

No use being mad about the central staircase.....if it doesn't suit you, then you have many other choices. It is what it is and no amount of complaining about it is going to change things. Ya, I know, sometime you feel better letting it all out:)

[runnerodb83]

No use being mad about the central staircase.....if it doesn't suit you, then you have many other choices. It is what it is and no amount of complaining about it is going to change things. Ya, I know, sometime you feel better letting it all out:)

 

Well its true that no amount of complaining will change this on the Royal Princess, but this issue has definitely gotten more attention and several people who may not have noticed this now have. I think those of us that are making noise are the ones who want Princess to hear this and make sure this isn't done again on subsequent vessels. You know what they say about the squeaky wheel...

[45028]

Thank you for your replies; yes, I can agree -- a royal pain. I wonder why?:eek:

[icat2000]

However, if people point out what they do like and don't like its an opportunity for Princess to take on board all feedback both good and bad to ensure that they don't make similar errors in the future. No use spending billions on a ship that doesn't cater to a mass majority.

[PescadoAmarillo]

Well its true that no amount of complaining will change this on the Royal Princess, but this issue has definitely gotten more attention and several people who may not have noticed this now have. I think those of us that are making noise are the ones who want Princess to hear this and make sure this isn't done again on subsequent vessels. You know what they say about the squeaky wheel...

I agree with this in part. I don't think Princess will change anything on the Regal because of passenger complaints about the Royal. I believe they knew well that many passengers would be displeased about the lack of a promenade and a mid-ship stairway, and the smaller balconies. Economic reasons forced the decisions they made; only economic reasons will motivate a change.

 

But it's so important that people post negative impressions. I don't understand the "all positive" thing at all. I would much rather to on a cruise expecting the worst and then find that things really aren't that bad than to go expecting a perfection that doesn't exist.

 

Of course, I'm not one to cancel a cruise because of negative reviews, either. I have faith that I'll find something to like that will save the cruise experience for me. And then, based on first hand information, I can decide if I want to cruise again on that ship.

[chamima]

I agree with this in part. I don't think Princess will change anything on the Regal because of passenger complaints about the Royal. I believe they knew well that many passengers would be displeased about the lack of a promenade and a mid-ship stairway, and the smaller balconies. Economic reasons forced the decisions they made; only economic reasons will motivate a change.

But it's so important that people post negative impressions. I don't understand the "all positive" thing at all. I would much rather to on a cruise expecting the worst and then find that things really aren't that bad than to go expecting a perfection that doesn't exist.

 

Of course, I'm not one to cancel a cruise because of negative reviews, either. I have faith that I'll find something to like that will save the cruise experience for me. And then, based on first hand information, I can decide if I want to cruise again on that ship.

 

 

 

Thanks for posting this.

I agree!

However, as to changes for new builds, Princess did add the central stairs to the Grand class after complaints about the Grand herself not having one.

[runnerodb83]

Thanks for posting this.

I agree!

However, as to changes for new builds, Princess did add the central stairs to the Grand class after complaints about the Grand herself not having one.

 

I don't think the Golden or Star were ordered by the time the Grand debuted in 1998 (Golden and Star were in 2001 and 2002).