New to cruises - lots of questions!

[FLsunshinegal]

Hi - Heard this site was great and I could get all the info I need! We're scheduling a 14 day Baltic cruise on the Constellation in June. Friends traveling with us want to get an inside cabin. My DH and I think it will be very small, especially for such a long cruise, but we don't know what to look for - what is worth the extra $$ and what isn't. I know personal preference has a lot to do with choices, but would really appreciate your input. Are inside cabins really bad? Should we go for broke and stay in the CC? Inbetween? Help!!:confused: And Thanks!

[flashdog_1]

An inside cabin on any Celebrity ship will be 172 sq ft and is quite organized, with two hanging closets, one closet with drawers, plus draswers in your two night stands. Robes are provided and all cabins have a mini bar fridge. Tv has lots of features. you can check your account, order room service, see movies, see shore excursion samples and sign up for them, see the view from the bridge, get a weather forecast, see the ship's bearings on a local nautical map. There is a clock on the room's telephone. You may order from the lunch or dinner menu during meal times only and get the real meal. Although I think Celebrity has a wonderful room sevice menu 24/7.

 

An ocean view cabin is the same size with the same exact ammenities.

 

You can look at the deck plans to see whether these cabins have a sofa bed, a pullman bed or two, or just chairs instead of a love seat.

 

A veranda cabin is the same size, also, with a small balcony.

 

the CCcabin is a slightly larger cabin 192 sq ft with a slightly larger balcony that allows for a breakfast table which will be dressed and your special breakfast menu will be served there. There will be flowers in the room and bathroom, a special menu of pillows, pillow top mattress, duvet on the bed, slightly more foot room at the end of the bed for maneuvering the cabin. There is a pullout sofa for a 3rd person if that is necessary. There are a few other ammenities which may or may not be of value to you. Bottle of champage upon arrival, bowl of fruit, afternoon canapes, bathmat in bathroom, better bathrobe and towels, a sewing kit, toy binoculars, a nicer souvenir bag to take home with you. Your gratuities are .50 more per day to your steward. You have a special check in line which may or may not save you time.

 

Calculate the price per person per night for each category cabin to see if the inclusion of a port hole, window, or veranda with floor to ceiling glass door etc. is worth it to you.

 

I have had an inside cabin on port intensive cruises and it was fine! No window light lets you sleep thru the night, especially in Alaska or northern Europe where there are more hours of daylight. I've had a 2C veranda and it was great. I have had CC and it was greater. And I've had a sky suite which I'll probably not be able to afford again, & I don't need a butler, nor his extra gratuity. The shipboard experience is the same in all rooms.

[Ine]

Find your ship through this link and you can make a virtual tour, including a view at various cabins

http://www.celebrity.com/destinations/ships/destships.do;jsessionid=0000-Da4vhOoHf8-C5-seMwKLgp:1028etmk3?dest=EUROP&cS=SIDENAV

[RickandAnne]

I think flashdog_1 put it about as well and evenly as anyone can. DW and I started on inside cabins and have, over time moved to oceanview, then to verandah, to CC and next month we give one of the aft Family Verandah cabins a try. We have come to our own conclusion that we value more space and love the verandah's, so we will probably never do an inside cabin again (just save for the bigger ones). We'll probably do a suite sometime, soon, too, on some long cruise.

 

But on our last cruise (on Millie last year) we sat at dinner with a couple (well into thieir 70's) on their 43rd (yes 43rd) Celebrity cruise. They have almost always had an inside cabin. They figure they are never in it and don't need or care for a larger cabin. Helps them afford frequent cruising I guess.....they booked their next cruise 60 days out while we were on board.

 

I think the message that flashdog_1 delivered is that there are really not any bad cabins.....just cabins that offer more.

 

It really is to each his (or her, Phyllis) own.

 

Rick

[tom_uk]

I think the message that flashdog_1 delivered is that there are really not any bad cabins.....just cabins that offer more.

 

And of course you need to decide if you want that 'more'. In the Carribean I can see the argument for balcony cabins - it's warm, and often the ships are moving pretty slowly, hence not much wind. In the Med it may be warm, but if the ship is under way, it may be moving quite fast - hence, there may be quite a stiff breeze across your verandah. And in Northern Europe, it may well not be at all warm, and blowing a gale. In that environment (eg, a cruise from Southampton or Dover to the Norwegian fjords) you could end up paying for a verandah that you simply didn't use because it was too cold out there.

[Gypsea]

Middle of the road is best. Inside is like a cave or closet. Great if you want to sleep in with no hint of light. Personally, I need to be able to tell if it's night or day. A balcony is an expense I have never been able to justify but a window, well, that is just a necessity. Still, if it is the difference between keeping the budget and blowing it an inside is fine too. If budget is not the issue I hate to see you deny yourself this small pleasure. Besides, there will be mornings when you'll want to see where you are immediately on awakening and all you'll have to do is open the drapes.

As for CC I think it is alot of money for very little if you can do without the bathmat and flowers!

[CRUISE BUG BIT HARD]

Our first cruise we had a ocean view cabin. It was good for the first cruise as it was exciting to be able to look out the window. For our second one we decided to try an inside cabin. The cabin size is exactly the same. Although a balcony would be nice we have decided to save the extra money and use it to take one more cruise a year. We are never in our cabin anyway except to sleep & shower and change clothes. It is really a personal preference but I would suggest trying the different ones to see what will work for you.

Suzanne

[FLsunshinegal]

I really appreciate all of the input. If this were just a 3-4 day cruise, I wouldn't be as concerned, but 14 days is a long time! We're pretty used to creature comforts, having traveled a lot (But not by ship) on business, so we're thinking of cutting out our kid's potential inheritance ;) and going for the CC. I sure hope we're not sorry - just poor, but happy. I liked the comment that there aren't bad rooms, just ones with more perks.

Thanks again - you guys are great. I'm sure I'll be back with more questions, now that you've helped so much with this one!

 

Kim

[CruiseQueen13]

14 day - I wouldn't get an inside. At a minimum oceanview, but it depends on you. Unless I get an amazing deal on an oceanview, we usually book balcony. We just love it and to us it's worth the extra $$$. I don't think the difference between balcony & cc is worth the difference.

 

Good luck - enjoy.