reggielew Posted December 29, 2013 #1 Share Posted December 29, 2013 Hi! My husband and I are planning to be on the Royal Princess in 3 weeks. Is the Retreat pool free as it is on the Emerald, Ruby, Crown, etc., or is there a charge for passengers not in the Sanctuary? Thanks, Reggie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capriccio Posted December 29, 2013 #2 Share Posted December 29, 2013 Hi! My husband and I are planning to be on the Royal Princess in 3 weeks. Is the Retreat pool free as it is on the Emerald, Ruby, Crown, etc., or is there a charge for passengers not in the Sanctuary? Thanks, Reggie Free and quiet! The only complication we experienced was on a very windy day -- you couldn't walk from one side of ship to the other in that area without the wind blowing your hat off. The other two sea days were much nicer and we spent 2 mornings by the pool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pam in CA Posted December 29, 2013 #3 Share Posted December 29, 2013 My husband and I are planning to be on the Royal Princess in 3 weeks. Is the Retreat pool free as it is on the Emerald, Ruby, Crown, etc., or is there a charge for passengers not in the Sanctuary?It's free. It also tends to be windy and there's little or no shade. Just so you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reggielew Posted December 29, 2013 Author #4 Share Posted December 29, 2013 Hi! Thanks for your replies. I'll certainly plan to give it a try. Reggie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidnsteph Posted January 1, 2014 #5 Share Posted January 1, 2014 We just returned from a holiday cruise on the Royal. The Retreat pool was very quiet, with comfortable loungers. But it was nearly impossible to find an open lounger on sea days. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riclop Posted January 1, 2014 #6 Share Posted January 1, 2014 Its free so enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caribill Posted January 1, 2014 #7 Share Posted January 1, 2014 We just returned from a holiday cruise on the Royal. The Retreat pool was very quiet, with comfortable loungers. But it was nearly impossible to find an open lounger on sea days. David What was using all the loungers? People? or Towels? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidnsteph Posted January 2, 2014 #8 Share Posted January 2, 2014 What was using all the loungers? People? or Towels? Actually, it was people. With only 2 pools and 1 adult pool, the loungers were full. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmwnc1959 Posted January 2, 2014 #9 Share Posted January 2, 2014 Actually, it was people. With only 2 pools and 1 adult pool, the loungers were full. David When the Retreat was busy, several places I always saw plenty of empty loungers were on the Sun Deck aft of the pool (both port and starboard sides), which were relatively quiet areas, and up on Deck 19 (Sky Deck) above the Retreat. Seems like most people never made it up to Deck 19, even on sea days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jannrasp Posted January 3, 2014 #10 Share Posted January 3, 2014 We just returned from a Caribbean Cruise on the Royal. The retreat was our favorite place to hang out--we had over 800 kids on our cruise, so it was nice to get away from them sometimes! On our sea days, all the loungers were reserved with people or towels by 7:45 AM! Early bird gets the worm, I suppose. There are six cabanas around the pool that can be reserved for the 1/2 day or full day, for a price. Then there's an open area behind that, and around the rails of the deck, there is some sort of canvas shade hooked up. Those were our favorites. It was very windy in the Retreat area! Oh, and there are two hot tubs and a bar right there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Jetswdo Posted January 3, 2014 #11 Share Posted January 3, 2014 My dh and I figure that we will just be on loungers for two mornings and one afternoon on sea days. We just want to be in shaded area any place in retreat pool area or deck above by retreat/sanctuary area. Not important for us to be right next to the pool, we actually like being a bit further away. On the Royal, are there any shaded spots on deck above, assuming we can't find loungers by Sanctuary. (We refuse to have to get stressed out on our vacation to get Sanctuary just for sea days, espescially when all that would probobly be left will be directly in the sun.) We are stuck on Spring Break cruise mid April, (teachers) and would prefer to be in adult area of ship, do to the main pool being busy with families with kids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pam in CA Posted January 3, 2014 #12 Share Posted January 3, 2014 (edited) No shade anywhere at the Retreat pool. There are canvas coverings and pergola slats that sort of diffuse the sun but don't block it nor can they be considered shade. There's an overhang around the main pool with tables, chairs, some couches and chairs that are in the shade. Depending on the sun's direction, there's some shade but these are snapped up quickly. Here are some photos. The Retreat-- The overhang couches and chairs at the main pool: Edited January 3, 2014 by Pam in CA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
janetz Posted January 3, 2014 #13 Share Posted January 3, 2014 We just returned from a Caribbean Cruise on the Royal. The retreat was our favorite place to hang out--we had over 800 kids on our cruise, so it was nice to get away from them sometimes! On our sea days, all the loungers were reserved with people or towels by 7:45 AM! Early bird gets the worm, I suppose.There are six cabanas around the pool that can be reserved for the 1/2 day or full day, for a price. Then there's an open area behind that, and around the rails of the deck, there is some sort of canvas shade hooked up. Those were our favorites. It was very windy in the Retreat area! Oh, and there are two hot tubs and a bar right there. Do they really allow people to leave their towels so early and not remove them after certain amount of time? ugh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bently57 Posted January 3, 2014 #14 Share Posted January 3, 2014 This ship sounds horrible. Give me the Crown or Ruby any day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capriccio Posted January 3, 2014 #15 Share Posted January 3, 2014 (edited) No shade anywhere at the Retreat pool. It really does depend on the direction of the ship, location of the sun, etc. I would qualify that to say there is no permanent shade at the Retreat pool (even the cabanas with roofs could be shady or sunny depending upon the sun's location). I don't sit out in the sun. On our Caribbean cruise last month we went to the Retreat pool on the 3 sea day mornings. The first day - which was extremely windy - we were up against the port side railing (to get out of as much of the wind as possible) and had shade for the morning. On the second day (no wind, thank goodness) we were under the pergola on the starboard side forward and were shady enough until about 1 pm. On the final day, we spent the entire morning in the shade in two of the 4 loungers at the deep end of the pool. I think we got to the pool around 10 am each morning. I also noticed that on mornings 2 and 3 (at least) the area on the starboard side just as you enter the Retreat area from the main pool area was in the shade. I guess this is just a long winded :D way to say you need to check it out for yourself :p. It was a very nice area and we definitely appreciated the relative silence (we like MUTS in the evening but could do without it during the day) and calm. Edited January 3, 2014 by capriccio Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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