Room and 3rd party - Diamond -Newbie Q

[RodneyG]

We have booked on the Xmas cruise , 19 days from Singapore to Sydney on the Diamond. I have never been on a cruise before so have no conception of what to expect and these boards have been invaluable. myself , wife and 9 year old daughter are going.

We have been booked on B301 (baja deck) which according to the deck plan

 

http://www.princess.com/ships/di/room/B301.html

 

looks like a bigger room than others nearby and it states it can take a 3rd and 4th occupant. I looked at pics of rooms and I cant for the life of me see where my daughter would sleep (I have scaned 40 pages of this forums , I do see something about bunks?)

Does anyone have info re this room? Is it a bigger room than normal as the deckplan seems to indicate ? the photo we see of the room on the deckplan seems to be the same as others?

Is it's postion good? I see a lot of threads re folk not getting the room they booked? We did have some choices , how can our TA have those choices ? Do the TA's have block booking of rooms which they onsell? what are the chances of indeed getting this cabin?

I am also confused re the shore excursions , considering we have never been to many of the ports of call is it the best strategy to take tours organised via the Princess?

I have paid in full for the cruise etc , and would like to access the online personalizer - when will I get the booking number I need to do so?

Im also really in 2 minds as to what to do re dining - ideally I would probably like to have set dining at a later sitting - what's the best stategy with a 9 yr old kid ? Is there some sort of program where she can eat with her pals and let us dine in "peace" ? Are there kiddies programs that extend later into the evening that will allow us to do this.? We want this trip to be as enjoyable for her as for us.

Sorry for all the questions , we are from South Africa and this holiday is costing us a fortune and we want to get best value and find out all the ins and outs prior to the cruise. As I say , so far this board has been invaluable!!!

[zachnlucy]

Here's the third bed in a Diamond balcony room. It folds up during the day.

http://community.webshots.com/photo/386652428/389888924IacpNy#

 

Yours does appear larger on the deck plan, but I couldn't find anything on Webshots for that specific room. Having never cruised Princess before (we leave in less than a week!!), I don't know anything specific about the kid's programs.

 

Your booking # should be on your confirmation documents received from your TA. If you can't locate one, call the TA. Mine is 6 digits using letters and numbers. Your confirmation should also have your room #. Let your TA know you do not want to upgrade and you should keep the room.

[cherylandtk]

Welcome Rodney! You will be far ahead of other "firsties" by having scanned these boards. And they will still have a great time too.

 

Yes, B301 is larger, as it is a wheelchair accessible stateroom. Wider spaces between furniture, ramp to balcony, no lip into bathroom, and a totally flat bathroom floor, so a chair can be rolled into the shower. (Drain all around, so nothing floods) I will see if I can find a specific link for you and repost unless another kind person beats me to it. The 3rd bunk usually drops down from the ceiling or folds out from the wall Pullman style. Occasionally a rollaway bed is used.

 

TA's can book any open cabin (meaning one that has not been specifically assigned to a specific passenger). Some TA's set aside blocks of types of rooms, but they are not really specific rooms, just a certain number of a certain category(s). These blocks will be "returned" to Princess if they don't sell by a set date in advance. Princess has a finite number of each type and knows when to stop selling each type. Some passengers do book a Guarantee category, and that means they can be assigned any cabin at that category OR higher. Theoretically, this means that some people get upgraded to a higher categroy than they paid for. In reality, they usually just go to a higher level within the same type. It is very, very, very rare to pay for an inside and get a suite, but it does occasionally happen.

 

If you want only this cabin, and do not want to be upgraded to a higher category, ask your TA to mark your booking "no upgrade" or mark it "no upgrade without prior passenger approval". There are good things and bad things about upgrades, mostly depending on what you think is a good/bad location. One man's castle and all that. So a lot depends on you. Are you light or heavy sleepers? Early risers or night owls? Eat and snack all day long or just a few big meals? (OK, on a cruise most people do both)

 

The kids program is wonderful, and your daughter will enjoy it greatly. Several nights they have meals for the kids, but not every night. When does she normally eat dinner? If she would like to have a "fancy meal with Mom and Dad" most nights, then you would be fine having her take late seating with you, assuming she can manage a meal at that hour. One option if she is a light eater and/or would prefer to eat early(most kids do), you can go with her to the buffet/pizza/grill at say 5 or 6, let her eat, turn her over to the kids program and then you and Mom can go to late seating for yourselves. Just let your dining steward know that she will not be at the table that night.

 

Not sure how holidy cruise bookings work in South Africa, but do get your TA on the phone and ask for your Princess booking number. Insist on it. Princess has already assigned one to your trip, and while I understand overseas bookings, packages and pricing are vastly different than here in the US, there are several posts from UK cruisers about getting their booking numbers so that they can use the Personalizer. I would think you are in the same situation.

 

Shore excursion--for first time cruiser, I would say to go with the ship tours, just for the ease and convenience. After you get more experienced in the routines, it is cheaper to book yourself. One piece of personal advice, FWIW, I suggest don't overdo it. You do not have to do an excursion every at every single port. Unless you want to.