Ever stay in CC room 1200 or 1201 Mercury?

[cruiseorbust]

We are considering CC room #1200 or 1201 on the sky deck on the Mercury. Has anyone ever stayed in these rooms? If so, how big was the balcony and do you think it would be worth about $500/pp more over an standard oceanview room to Alaska?

[SeaDays]

We were in 1201 a couple of years ago.

 

The balcony was great -- not only larger, but it included both a covered and uncovered area. This would be beneficial if you hit some Alaska rain. It was as long as a sky suite balcony, but narrower.

 

Also, the stairway to the casual dining area is just outside your door.

 

When we sailed, 1201 was priced like any other balcony, since it had not yet been designated as a concierge class cabin. (We did feel a little strange when the butler passed us by at tea time). The extra cost you mention, is for the most part, due to the CC services that now come with 1201.

[cruiseorbust]

We were in 1201 a couple of years ago.

 

The balcony was great -- not only larger, but it included both a covered and uncovered area. This would be beneficial if you hit some Alaska rain. It was as long as a sky suite balcony, but narrower.

 

Also, the stairway to the casual dining area is just outside your door.

 

When we sailed, 1201 was priced like any other balcony, since it had not yet been designated as a concierge class cabin. (We did feel a little strange when the butler passed us by at tea time). The extra cost you mention, is for the most part, due to the CC services that now come with 1201.

 

I appreciate your information. What kind of furniture can you fit out on the balcony? We are traveling with 7 of us in total. Will it be too crowded for all of us to be on the balcony while viewing the hubbard glacier?

[sdcruiser]

We also stayed in Cabin 1201 to Alaska on the Mercury last summer. It was a great cabin, best location on a ship out of 11 cruises we've taken. Like the previous poster said, it is a quick trip one flight down to the buffet area and a quick outside jaunt across the upper pool deck to the spa in the front of the ship or to the Theatre.

 

We also traveled with 4 other family members besides the three of us and had all seven of us on our balcony without a problem. We had two lounge chairs, two regular chairs, and two tables on the balcony with plenty of room to spare. If this cabin is $500/pp more than just an oceanview cabin without a verandah, it would be worth definitely worth the extra money. These two cabins go fast as they are largest CC balcony cabins on the entire ship.

 

Good Luck

 

SDCRuiser

[Nanietwo]

I am wait listed for cabin 1201 on our cruise next October. We did get 1241 which is on the same deck, but the balcony looks a little smaller.

Has anyone stayed in that cabin?

[SkiCruiser44]

What sailing in Oct? We are on the 10/20 sailing and have cabin 1201 booked. 1200 was already booked.

 

Kathy

[Nanietwo]

We are on the cruise right after you so if we do get cabin 1201 please leave it nice and clean for us!!!!!!!!!!!

We were on the Mercury last year and my husbands favorite place was the sky bar so I thought we should have a cabin as close to it as possible.

 

Lynn

[SeaDays]

We had two lounge chairs, a conventional upright chair, and a small table -- and plenty of deck space.

 

If you wanted to host a gathering of people just standing around, I'm sure you would be able to host at least a dozen.

 

The balcony can fit way more furniture -- the question is whether or not it is available.

[Mercruiser]

I stayed in cabin 1200 on Mercury about four years ago on a Vancouver to Seward cruise. Here is what I liked about it.

• The balcony was huge compared to the other standard balconies (CC and 2A) on the Penthouse and Vista decks. I don't remember the exact dimensions, but it had to be at least 8 feet deep from the balcony door to the rail. The standard balconies are probably only about 3 feet deep.
  
• With an Alaska cruise, it's always daylight. I liked being able to go out on the balcony on a moments notice whenever there was some interesting scenery. This happens a lot on an Alaskan cruise since the ship is mostly on the "inside passage".
  
• The Sky Deck balconies have terrific visibility compared to the Vista and Penthouse deck balconies. The outer half of the Sky Deck balconies are completely open to the sky.
  
• The location is very convenient to the top decks and the buffet. I like my early morning coffee. It was really convenient to go down one flight of stairs to the Palm Springs Cafe right under the Sky Deck. I would bring coffee and o.j. back to the room.

Here are the disadvantages.

• The cost of the balcony is an obvious disadvantage. It sounds like you can save $1,000 by booking an Ocean View cabin. Judging by the number of balconies on new builds, most passengers must think balconies are worth the extra money. I know I do.
  
• A couple of times I was awakened by noise coming through the ceiling from the Sunrise Deck above. The noise source was people running or crew members sliding deck chairs in the wee hours of the night. There are signs on the Sunrise deck saying the running is not allowed. But, people do it sometimes regardless. Overall, the noise wasn't a big deal - just a minor annoyance.

We really had a great time on our Mercury Alaska cruise. We really liked cabin 1200. In fact, we liked it well enough that we are booked in Mercury cabin 1201 for a Mexico cruise in 2006.

 

The Sky Deck "CC" cabins are so popular that if you even think you might want one of these, you had better book now. You can always rebook in an Ocean View if you change your mind up to the time that final payment is due.

 

Nanietwo asked about cabin 1241. I didn't stay in that one, but I did get a good look at the balcony. It's a little smaller than that of 1200/1201 because of the angled cut-out shown on the deck plans. But, it is still way bigger than the CC and 2A balconies on the Penthouse and Vista decks. I think you will be very happy with cabin 1241.

[Mercruiser]

I found this web site that has some photos of Mercury's cabin 1201. This should help you get a good idea of the size and configuration of the balcony.

 

 

http://www.info-res.com/ehill/othpgs/mercphoto.htm

[Nanietwo]

Thanks so much for the pictures and also the information on cabin 1241.

 

Lynn

[cruiseorbust]

Thanks for the pictures!!!!

[holomuku]

I just got 1241 for our MR cruise 12/4. We've stayed in that cabin before and if 1200 or 1201 was available they would be my first choices. 1240 and 1241 are close to the magrodome (as in basketball court) and they are also connecting cabins so you get a chair instead of a couch. The balconies are a little smaller than 1200 and 1201- and also a little less private as part is exposed to the back of the ship.

 

with that said- the balconies are far bigger than the standard CC cabins and whatever small annoyances we get from the other things-it's worth the trade off. I will keep checking to see if 1200 or 1201 opens up but right now I'm thirilled to get this one. I'be been checking every day since we booked this to see if one of the CC's on Sky Deck opened up. This will be our third time no Sky Deck and we really like that loction.

 

nanietwo- I don't trust the wait list system -- there is one website I uset that seems to have up to the minute cabin availablity on X. When I called and changed this morning, this website reflected the change by the time I hung up the phone! If you email me at sallye53@netzero.net and put "cruise critic ?" in the header I'll send you the name of the agencys website. Just be aware if you booked via a travel agent only they can change your cabin-- X won't do it direct with you.

 

fyi- I don't book with this agencys website, I just use the website to check out cabins!

[excitedofharpenden]

I'm just back from Mercury and stayed in 1200. It's a great cabin with a good sized balcony. I had three loungers, a small table together with a larger breakfast table and two chairs with plenty of room to move around. I have been downloading my pictures and here are three I took of the cabin to give you an idea.

 

Phil

[excitedofharpenden]

And looking out.

 

Phil

[excitedofharpenden]

And the cabin.

 

Phil

[holomuku]

Phil-

 

can you share what you felt about the concierege class advantages?

 

or do I have to wait for your review.....just curious if you enjoyed the benefits.

[SheilaNC]

but...does anyone know if there are any quad cabins on Mercury? We are planning a family cruise to Alaska next year and are having problems figuring out how to sleep 6 adults and 5 kids.

 

Thanks

[firstplacechef]

This will be our second cruise on X and we really enjoyed CC class last year on Mercury. We were on Penthouse deck along with several other CC rooms and the service was excellent.

 

Next year we are booked on Galaxy (looks like same deck plan as Mercury) for 1243 on Sky deck. My question is since there are only 4 CC rooms on Sky deck is there any chance that those rooms get any extra perks from the suites? :{) I can't really see how the service could be any better. I do know that the afternoon canapes looked better for the suites vs CC rooms.

 

We grabbed on of the Sky deck CC rooms due to the increased balcony size and are really looking forward to it. I wish we could have gotten 1201 or 1200 but not complaining here. Early booking allowed us a price to get 1243 for DW and I and an inside room directly across the hall for our kids and so get the CC room to ourselves!!!! My next question is will they be able to board with us in the CC line if it is shorter than the regular check-in line? Thanks in advance! Scott

[excitedofharpenden]

Phil-

 

can you share what you felt about the concierege class advantages?

 

or do I have to wait for your review.....just curious if you enjoyed the benefits.

holomuku, I did enjoy the benefits, the most noticeable being the champagne bottle on arrival (if you drink it, of course), the thicker bath robe, the shower attachment which gave a good powerful and adjustable spray and the priority tender tickets which came in useful as we tendered at three ports (Puerto Vallarta was added). Priority debarkation was nice too as it meant I was off the ship and away in a cab to the airport without delay, but this may have been the case anyway. Would I pay an extra $500 pp for Concierge? If I could secure this larger balconied cabin then probably yes, otherwise no.

 

Scott, standard Concierge service on deck 12. The suites don't make any difference to that as far as I could see.

 

Phil

[holomuku]

Phil-

 

thanks for the info. When shopping, I always break down prices per day for two of us...

 

When I went to book this (as goofy as it sounds) the CC class rate for senior citizen (okay I JUST turned 55!!) was $5 more than the regular rate. And not $5 pp- but per DAY so about $2.50 a day each. Couldn't turn that down!

 

And now that I'm on sky deck...even a better deal!

 

again, thanks for all your info. sounds like you guys had a great time and a wonderful group!