Switched to insides after mini-suites. Thank you Princess!

[BumperII]

 

We need to thank Princess for teaching us how good an inside cabin can be. completely.

 

 

 

Now you know. Many a fine cruse has been enjoyed while bunking in an inside cabin. We have taken 37 cruises, 33 of them booked insides. We were upgraded a few times, but even the upgrades were really no big deal.

 

There is a perfectly good reason why we booked inside cabins. It is because we are poor. :D

 

Unlike most others, we enjoy the balcony for Alaska and Canada - New England trips only. Because of health issues, we aren't allowed out in the sun anyway, so the inside cabins suit us best.

 

Suites are usually four times as expensive as inside staterooms. They are nice, but they are not four times as nice, or at least they don't give us four times as much comfort.

 

[BopRN]

I'm another who has given up on balconies due to the chairs. They're like sitting on concrete and extremely uncomfortable. If I can't enjoy my balcony because of the furniture, why pay for it? Old on the left, "new" (changed several years ago) on the right.

 

I haven't cruised Princess before, but the chairs look pretty much the same. What am I missing?

[Coral]

I wonder what would happen if you were in a mini suite and requested that teak furniture be brought up and swapped out...they actually may grant the request..

 

i wonder if anyone has tried it..

 

No - they won't. I know someone who wanted a 3rd chair as there were 3 people in the cabin and couldn't get that. There is only a limited amount of teak furniture (such as suites, some ships on promenade deck 7 outside) - they are not going to take it away from a suite for you.

Edited July 6, 2016 by Coral

[Coral]

delete

Edited July 6, 2016 by Coral

[Chris86]

I agree. I would prefer more cruises or upgrade to a luxury line. Vs upgrade my room. Happy to spend slight more for a balcony but that is all.

[OzKiwiJJ]

We booked a balcony for our first Princess cruise but, like others, found the furniture too uncomfortable for sitting for any length of time. Now we book insides and enjoy the savings. On our upcoming cruise we are saving around AU $5000 by booking an inside cabin. That's another whole cruise!

[dandylion]

I am returning to Princess after several years away and am disappointed to discover that not only is the balcony on my booked and final payment paid mini suite going to be tiny, but the furniture isn't comfortable. This seems to be the over whelming consensus on this thread.

[Astro Flyer]

Years ago we were willing to pay a reasonable amount for a balcony cabin but not at the current higher rates with less comfortable balcony furniture. They've also eliminated the 2 recliners from the larger (9'x9') partially covered Caribe deck cabins available on most of their ships. Now when friends visit for a glass of wine, 2 people have chairs & 2 have to sit on a footstool. :(

 

Their higher prices for less comfort & functionality of a balcony have resulted in us now only booking inside cabins. We don't spend much time there & with the savings we can cruise more days.

 

The only way we'll have another balcony is with a free upgrade which is now more rare because passengers are willing to pay for an upsell. That's a wise decision for Princess but there are very few upsells that are cost-effective for us to even consider any type of a balcony cabin.

Edited July 7, 2016 by Astro Flyer

[Steelers0854]

Myself and DW don't mind the new furniture. Is it the most comfortable ever? Nope. But we have no issue sitting out there for an hour or more. We have always booked a balcony (and once a mini), as we greatly enjoy being out there on sail away and going into and out of port, plus we go out randomly throughout the day.

 

We are still working and thus have a limited amount of vacation time so there really is no overwhelming benefit to booking an inside cabin to try and save some money as I can't put it into another cruise that same year. Maybe when we retire we may re-evaluate but for now it's a balcony for us.

 

I will say also that we didn't feel the mini suite was worth the extra money for just the 2 of us. If you added a third person I would say go minisuite.

 

Don't even get me started about the new "club class". Seems like the biggest waste of money to me. But I guess I can't knock it if I haven't tried it.

[Jetswdo]

We usually book minis or plain balcony cabins-- rarely actually sit out side though-- and on Princess learned about uncovered windy balconies when we were on the Island many years ago- balcony was useless due to wind, unless we were docked- and on those days were off the boat anyway.

 

We will be on the Regal for 7 day N.E. Canada cruise, and didn't see the point of paying a lot extra for balcony cabin, when there is only one sea day- and we will be very busy off the ship for the ports anyway. So this will be our first inside cabin booking ever. I will write an in depth review, after the cruise--

 

But I will say that for Alaska sailing, we are very glad that we did book a balcony cabin-- I also liked our mini suite covered balcony on the Panama Canal cruise as well.

[SoCal Cruiser78]

...Perhaps their intention with the new furniture was to get us out in the public spaces where we can spend money...

 

I imagine this is the case. The same with eliminating prom decks with lounge chairs.

 

I like having a balcony to view early AM docking procedures without having to get dressed and go out on deck, but the new Princess balcony furniture is useless to me. The upshot is that I won't book any future balconies on Princess unless they are a screaming deal.

Edited July 7, 2016 by SoCal Cruiser78

[pablo222]

It doesn't matter what cabin you have because every passenger gets the same food, the same entertainment, the same activities and ports.

 

Princess is able to sell outside and balcony cabins for more than insides.

They are able to sell suites for much, much more than insides.

 

Do these passengers like to throw their money away?

 

Maybe there is more to a cruise than the things you list.

 

Hardly anyone would turn down a free upgrade from an inside

to a suite. Just the 1 in 10,000 person who says I like to sleep

in total darkness.

[janetz]

It is really annoying that the beautiful Regal and Royal only offer insides and balconies.

 

We sailed the Royal in 2014 and spent the money on a tiny balcony on the Lido deck, to be next to our friends as a surprise.

 

We just booked the NY to FLL repo for next year on the Regal and for the very first time booked a sideways inside cabin, on the Lido. We are paying 1800 for that. I think we will be ok

.

Our friends, who really want an aft are just over 4,000. You can do a B2B for that.

To each their own. :)

Edited July 10, 2016 by janetz

[RocketMan275]

Life is too short to drink cheap wine or cruise in an inside cabin.

[keithm]

We had been sailing almost exclusively in mini-suites for years. Hate the new balcony furniture. We had an opportunity last year to sail for four weeks in an inside for a very good price. We weren't sure if we could do this after the mini-suites.

 

Well we could. No problem. Perhaps DH enjoys the mini-suites 10% more than an inside. This is not worth paying at least 100-200% more to obtain. For me, the math makes even less sense, since I enjoyed the cruise in inside cabin much more.

 

How can this be? One of main benefits of the mini-suite, for me, is the balcony. It is very hard for me to obtain any value from it with the new furniture. I have found ways to roll up multiple towels and arrange pillows and stack the footrests. It takes several minutes to set this up and break it down everytime I want to use the balcony. After a few days, I just stop bothering and use the public spaces, but I feel foolish and guilty knowing that I paid for a balcony that I can't use. So then, I force myself to go through the effort of setting up my balcony seating again...and even with my best efforts, it is not that comfortable.

 

I actually saw people put portable chairs (like for going to see fireworks) on their balcony. Thought about doing it next cruise, but after a few days, I never saw these folks on their balcony again. Maybe Princess stopped them from using their own furniture.

 

So with a inside, I just go the the promenade deck and enjoy a nice teak steamer chair and a better view of the sea...no guilt...no time wasted with pillows and cushions.

 

We need to thank Princess for teaching us how good an inside cabin can be. Perhaps their intention with the new furniture was to get us out in the public spaces where we can spend money. Well it was only 50% successful because even though they did get us out of the cabin, we don't spend money on the promenade deck. Perhaps the next step will be to put uncomfortable furniture on the promenade deck too or just take away the furniture and/or promenade deck completely. Wait a minute...isn't that what is happening on the new ships?

We always did balcony cabins. Then we did an inside on Celebrity. We've done insides ever since. I did find the towels to be terrible(small & very rough)on the Regal. Thought this was due to lower amenities of an inside cabin. We checked the bathroom of a balcony cabin.We did a B2B, so rooms were being "turned" over during the 2'nd leg of the cruise. Towels & amenities were the same. Could not accept the 50% increase for a balcony(and Princess balconies are small to boot)So we'll stay doing inside cabins. I will say, however that the minisuites have good size balconies.

[getaway101]

I haven't cruised Princess before, but the chairs look pretty much the same. What am I missing?

 

I was thinking the same thing. :confused:

[Duffysmom]

I'm another who has given up on balconies due to the chairs. They're like sitting on concrete and extremely uncomfortable. If I can't enjoy my balcony because of the furniture, why pay for it? Old on the left, "new" (changed several years ago) on the right.

I agree they are not comfortable.:mad: I've asked for two extra pillows and create my own comfortable seat arrangement. One to sit (yes my backside is sitting on a pillow):eek: and one on the backrest. I also put one of the decorative pillows on the tiny table and rest my legs on it. My version of a recliner.:p I've actually considered bringing one of those blow up seats to put on the balcony. I've also seen pictures of balconies with hammocks.. I love the peace and quiet of a balcony and I refuse to let some miserable furniture deter me from enjoying it.

Edited July 10, 2016 by Duffysmom

[Cruise Raider]

We've sailed in every cabin type but a full suite ...

We love having a balcony but use them less and less all the time. I hate those blue mats on the balcony floors and haven't even seen the new furniture yet but doesn't sound very enticing.

We've found that the obstructed oceanview cabins on the Emerald deck suits both our needs, wants and budget ... so this is what we now book most often while on Princess. I actually love the location ... but that isn't to say that if a good deal on a balcony or mini-suite came up, we wouldn't switch to one of those in a heartbeat. I just don't require it anymore.

We're actually going to try out one of those window suites in 2018. I book way far in advance on all my cruises and if the price goes down before final payment, I try to get in on that. But, the reason for booking one of these suites is I have always wanted to try out the all inclusive beverage package and you need to book at least a balcony cabin or better. For not that much more, I could actually try out the suite benefits, too. I might be hooked but since we are both retired, I can well imagine that inside and obstructed OV cabins wouldn't be out of our realm in the future.

[Robinsoncruiseso]

I am returning to Princess after several years away and am disappointed to discover that not only is the balcony on my booked and final payment paid mini suite going to be tiny, but the furniture isn't comfortable. This seems to be the over whelming consensus on this thread.

 

I guess balcony furniture is alot like food. I personally had no problem falling asleep on it. Pulled up the ottoman, relclined the back and away I went...all while ship was moving AND we were in a far forward balcony.

[seafish]

Just curious - where is this not so good Princess new furniture? - on certain balcony cabin types? - on certain ships?

[davenew]

This is an interesting twist. Most people only move up in cabin categories. Interesting perspective. ;)

 

Nothing to do with the economy and disposable incomes :D

[HleeCruiser]

Life is too short to drink cheap wine or cruise in an inside cabin.

 

Same here. I sailed in an inside the first two cruises. After that (36 cruises) we always book a mini or a balcony.

 

In the inside cabins I always felt I was living in a closet.

[Cinerama]

On our first cruise I thought it would be nice to have a balcony. We were at a different port almost every day so, it was cool to get up in the morning, look out our balcony and see a different island each day. But we didn't use it that much so we saved money and did inside cabins for our next few cruises.

 

On our cruise on the RC Oasis, we did an OV cabin as they were cheaper than the inside. I thought in one way it was nicer than a balcony as you could see more since we didn't have a railing, the window was almost floor to ceiing.

 

Our last two cruises we did the drink packages. Yes, it is over $50 a day but we are on vacation, like to try different drinks throughout the day and it is fun.

 

Our next cruise is a sip and sail so we couldn't pass that up. $989 for aft cabin C752 on the Ruby. It would have cost us $390 for the beverage package so, its only $599 for the aft balcony. We have never been in an aft balcony cabin before so that will also be fun to try out.

Edited July 12, 2016 by Cinerama

[AKman2495]

We have always booked insides. The savings are substantial and we have never noticed any "inconvenience" or deprivation from being in an inside.

 

As others have said, the food is the same and the public spaces are the same. We always make good use of those spaces and have never mined not having a balcony.

[Thrak]

On our first cruise I thought it would be nice to have a balcony. We were at a different port almost every day so, it was cool to get up in the morning, look out our balcony and see a different island each day. But we didn't use it that much so we saved money and did inside cabins for our next few cruises.

 

On our cruise on the RC Oasis, we did an OV cabin as they were cheaper than the inside. I thought in one way it was nicer than a balcony as you could see more since we didn't have a railing, the window was almost floor to ceiing.

 

Our last two cruises we did the drink packages. Yes, it is over $50 a day but we are on vacation, like to try different drinks throughout the day and it is fun.

 

Our next cruise is a sip and sail so we couldn't pass that up. $989 for aft cabin C752 on the Ruby. It would have cost us $390 for the beverage package so, its only $599 for the aft balcony. We have never been in an aft balcony cabin before so that will also be fun to try out.

 

We sailed in C752 on Grand. I think you will love it. :)

 

We booked a balcony for our cruise next year as they included the beverage package for balcony and higher. I'm far too cheap to purchase the package but will gladly take if for free. Since the cruise is 28 days it would be over $3,100 to purchase the package and there is no way in heck I would spend that for drinks!