Mini-suite on Caribbean Princess

[sboh]

We're thinking of booking a mini on the Caribbean Princess (Eastern Caribbean) for next March, probably cat AC. I understand that the balconies are open but would prefer to have as much shade as possible so was wondering if one side of the ship would be better than the other. Prefer a mini as there are four of us and we're hesitant to book an AD on Emerald as they're above Club Fusion. Any thoughts?

[JUSBRENFL]

We just got back today, the mini suite is definately the way to go. We were on the port side, going down the sun was mostly on the starbord side. The balcony is completely uncovered. You can get lots of sun. Comming back we had the sun on our side, it does affect the coolness of your room. We were pretty warm most of the time, so I asked our room steward for a fan and he brought me one.

The upgrades have not taken place yet- I asked about the new mattresses, I was told by my room steward that they only can do 2 per week.

The beds are two twin mattresses pushed together and pretty soft mattress.

 

The room is a great size, it has a couch, I dont know if if folds out to a bed, i didnt try.

We were on Dolphin 422, which i am glad. You still feel some motion there, more on the front and the back.

[LARGIN]

We were pretty warm most of the time, so I asked our room steward for a fan and he brought me one.

 

Did you tip for that extra service?

[JUSBRENFL]

Did you tip for that extra service?

Yes i most certainly did, I read the boards before going, i made sure my room steward was taken care of very well. He took good care of us and I took good care of him. Like i said on the other post, I did give the tips, just how i wanted to give them.

thanks again

[Nicecara]

Gee...always a dilemma for so many including myself. That is the million dollar question :) We can't have what we would really like within our price range...actually they don't have it. It's what most people would prefer...a minisuite with a Caribe size balcony (large and half covered)...I have had both and would always prefer the mini for me. I like being so close to the water and overlooking the water only...oddly for me, I just feel uncomfortable overlooking someone elses balcony..like I am invading their privacy :confused: I just don't mind if someone is overlooking me. With a mini we usually have a good half day with no sun one way and it is the opposite of that on the way back. On the Caribe balconies, you still get sun but a little more shade during the middle of the day. If I don't want to be in the sun, or rain I still have a nice large sofa to relax on in a mini and that's really nice. It's a dilemma so many of us face because of the plus and minuses on both sides. I have figured out that only you can truly decide...which is the worse of two evils...no sofa, large half covered balcony OR large sofa and medium sized uncovered balcony...I just happen to like the latter best (even if it isn't perfect). Actually I don't think there is an evil anything when you are on a cruise.:D As for the emerald Mini's...I can't speak, I just don't think I would like to be down with all the tender boats and I just assume there are lots of kids in that area as they are all quads. That could be perfect for some...maybe even me... Sorry, not much help to the age old question :( Let us know what you end up going with.

[stoneharborlady]

We're thinking of booking a mini on the Caribbean Princess (Eastern Caribbean) for next March, probably cat AC. I understand that the balconies are open but would prefer to have as much shade as possible so was wondering if one side of the ship would be better than the other. Prefer a mini as there are four of us and we're hesitant to book an AD on Emerald as they're above Club Fusion. Any thoughts?

 

 

We had E727 (AD) and never had a problem with noise or music from Club Fusion.

[pamwinn]

I stayed in E730 last June. It is right over the stage in CLub Fusion. While we did hear a little from time to time, it was not bothersome at all. If you were on the starboard side toward the lifeboats, I doubt you'd hear anything at all. The shade was a must for us.

[Nicecara]

Sounds like the Emerald mini's may be perfect for you :) Shade!!! That's nice to hear.

[sunnyv]

We're thinking of booking a mini on the Caribbean Princess (Eastern Caribbean) for next March, probably cat AC. I understand that the balconies are open but would prefer to have as much shade as possible so was wondering if one side of the ship would be better than the other. Prefer a mini as there are four of us and we're hesitant to book an AD on Emerald as they're above Club Fusion. Any thoughts?

 

We had E731 on the CB. Only once did we hear a little bass coming from Club Fusion. These balconies are totally covered and if you are fortunate enough to get E730 or E731 the balconies are extended towards the aft of the ship. Here are some pictures.

 

http://community.webshots.com/album/290527980oqveMZ

 

We have the same cabin booked for our "Spooky" cruise next year!

[mariakitty]

We just got off the CB this morning and we LOVED our mini-suite. We had D504 (Dolphin) and the room was spacious and the balcony was large. What did find was that we didn't use the balcony very much because it was so humid. We are west coasters used to dry heat, so the high humidity was difficult to get used to. If we go to the Caribbean again during the summer/fall, we probably won't spend the extra money for a balcony.

 

The mini-suite beds were upgraded during our cruise this week! We had the old beds on Saturday, but on Sunday the room stewards were busy taking out the old mattresses and replacing them with the new and they were MUCH better. We didn't even need the egg crate foam. Definitely worth the price for the mini-suite. :)

[sboh]

Thanks for all the good information-especially the pictures. Now looking at cat AD on the starboard side as it does not sound like Club Fusion is much of an issue...