Suite Benefits

[mum and son]

I definitely enjoyed the Suite breakfast (on the Emerald it was in the Grown Grill), the Club Class dining and the afternoon tea served in the suite. For the afternoon tea, time it right and don't have it on a day where you have special dinner plans as there is SOOO much food. I invited 8 family members around and ordered food for 4. There was still way too much.

 

But, one thing that I can add is that the only time I have been offered a place (paid, not free) on the Ultimate Ship Tour was when I was in a suite. Every other time I have put my name down I have missed out. Not sure if that was a coincidence or not... but it was awesome.

[Triptkr]

49 minutes ago, mum and son said:

I definitely enjoyed the Suite breakfast (on the Emerald it was in the Grown Grill), the Club Class dining and the afternoon tea served in the suite. For the afternoon tea, time it right and don't have it on a day where you have special dinner plans as there is SOOO much food. I invited 8 family members around and ordered food for 4. There was still way too much.

 

But, one thing that I can add is that the only time I have been offered a place (paid, not free) on the Ultimate Ship Tour was when I was in a suite. Every other time I have put my name down I have missed out. Not sure if that was a coincidence or not... but it was awesome.

Thanks for your reply!   Good to know about the afternoon tea.  Which ship was it that you got to do the Ultimate Ship Tour?

[mum and son]

10 minutes ago, Triptkr said:

Thanks for your reply!   Good to know about the afternoon tea.  Which ship was it that you got to do the Ultimate Ship Tour?

I did it on the Emerald Princess. Loved it! I still booked it as soon as I boarded though.

Edited September 10, 2019 by mum and son

[Debbdo]

13 minutes ago, Triptkr said:

Thanks for your reply!   Good to know about the afternoon tea.  Which ship was it that you got to do the Ultimate Ship Tour?

 

We did the Ultimate Ship Tour 5 years ago on the Coral Princess. Loved it!! Highly recommend it. 

[DMT1970]

On 8/23/2019 at 1:33 PM, Shaver John said:

Not to be disagreeable but Club Class does not guarantee that you will not have to wait to be seated. It is not common, but my husband and I have actually been told to come back in 20 minutes or so in Club Class. I love Club Class, but to say you never have to wait is a disclaimer. Not often, but I have seen it several time with other folks who have to wait for a few minutes. We just choose to forget the wait and went to the buffet and had a very nice evening. Next day, when we went to lunch in Club Class they could not do enough for us. I think they really felt bad that we missed out on dinner, needless to say there is plenty of great food all over the ship to get us a meal. We are not picky, so it was fine with us......

We will be on Crown Princess 11/7 and have a club class mini suite.  I tried to call princess to ask questions about dining and could not get an exact answer to our questions.  Guess we will just go with the flow.  One thing I would like to know is in the traditional dining room you can be at a table with other cruisers.  Will we have that option in club class or will we always be eating just the 2 of us?  I was torn as to what to pick for dining option as we like being with other people and we like that we always have the same waiter in traditional dining....they get to know what you like.   I hope we will enjoy the club class dining. 

[Colo Cruiser]

2 minutes ago, DMT1970 said:

We will be on Crown Princess 11/7 and have a club class mini suite.  I tried to call princess to ask questions about dining and could not get an exact answer to our questions.  Guess we will just go with the flow.  One thing I would like to know is in the traditional dining room you can be at a table with other cruisers.  Will we have that option in club class or will we always be eating just the 2 of us?  I was torn as to what to pick for dining option as we like being with other people and we like that we always have the same waiter in traditional dining....they get to know what you like.   I hope we will enjoy the club class dining. 

Club Class is not set up to share tables. 

The 2 top bench seats are very close to each other but that is about it.

[caribill]

4 hours ago, DMT1970 said:

We will be on Crown Princess 11/7 and have a club class mini suite.  I tried to call princess to ask questions about dining and could not get an exact answer to our questions.  Guess we will just go with the flow.  One thing I would like to know is in the traditional dining room you can be at a table with other cruisers.

 

Unlike the regular dining room, they do not ask if you want to share a table with others. Only if you meet with other Club Class passengers and arrange to eat at the same time together will you have a table with other passengers.

[DMT1970]

3 hours ago, caribill said:

 

Unlike the regular dining room, they do not ask if you want to share a table with others. Only if you meet with other Club Class passengers and arrange to eat at the same time together will you have a table with other passengers.

So with that being said.  Is there any other benefit to the club class dining.   In others opinions is it really that much better than traditional dining? 

[Cruise Raider]

8 hours ago, caribill said:

 

Unlike the regular dining room, they do not ask if you want to share a table with others. Only if you meet with other Club Class passengers and arrange to eat at the same time together will you have a table with other passengers.

 

We never had to wait for a table for Club Class dining, they even snagged a couple of nearby tables from the MDR by changing the table cloths, wine glasses, etc. to make sure we wouldn't have a wait.  However, we were asked to share a table a couple of times when it was busy, one time of which we obliged.  Much like at the MDR at dinnertime, we could say no.  But, for the lunches, we were required to share a table.  We weren't asked but rather, just seated at a table of 6.  

[Cruise Raider]

13 hours ago, DMT1970 said:

We will be on Crown Princess 11/7 and have a club class mini suite.  I tried to call princess to ask questions about dining and could not get an exact answer to our questions.  Guess we will just go with the flow.  One thing I would like to know is in the traditional dining room you can be at a table with other cruisers.  Will we have that option in club class or will we always be eating just the 2 of us?  I was torn as to what to pick for dining option as we like being with other people and we like that we always have the same waiter in traditional dining....they get to know what you like.   I hope we will enjoy the club class dining. 

 

Oh my ... I loved club class dining.  But, there is nothing to prevent you from dining in the MDR.  I'm not sure if you can use the traditional dining, though, as you'd have to speak with the maitre'd as soon as you board to see if there are any openings in one of those rooms.  You are certainly welcome to go and wait in line in the anytime MDR, though.  They are more than willing to allow you to share a table with others.  

And, you can certainly ask at the club class dining if there are others that are willing to share a table.  The worst that they can tell you is there is nobody else that wants to share at that time.  And, the club class is a lot more intimate with the same sets of waiters, so you will probably get to know most, if not all of them, half way through your cruise.  We were consistently seated in a table with the same waiters.  

And as far as being better than traditional dining, I think it is world's better ... mostly due to the no waiting aspect.  However, they do provide one special dish every night prepared fresh that were much better than we've had in the MDR section, IMO.  Aside from that, the tables are set more elegantly with nicer table cloths and wine glasses.  If you are going to order a nice bottle of wine, it really pays to drink it out of a nice glass, a Riedel style glass.  I don't mean to come off as snooty ... but we were completely spoiled with club class, the one and only time we had it.  I certainly don't see how you wouldn't enjoy  it.  

[jasbo49]

5 hours ago, DMT1970 said:

So with that being said.  Is there any other benefit to the club class dining.   In others opinions is it really that much better than traditional dining? 

In addition to being seated almost immediately, you generally spend less time waiting for courses. If you can count on being finished in an hour, it's a lot easier to plan to your night's activities.

 

Jim

[Gracie115]

13 hours ago, DMT1970 said:

We will be on Crown Princess 11/7 and have a club class mini suite.  I tried to call princess to ask questions about dining and could not get an exact answer to our questions.  Guess we will just go with the flow.  One thing I would like to know is in the traditional dining room you can be at a table with other cruisers.  Will we have that option in club class or will we always be eating just the 2 of us?  I was torn as to what to pick for dining option as we like being with other people and we like that we always have the same waiter in traditional dining....they get to know what you like.   I hope we will enjoy the club class dining. 

 

While Club Class is not set up to "share" tables, on our 10 night cruise last fall we were in Club Class and nearly every night we were seated in a row of "2 top" tables that enabled us to converse with our neighbors if we wanted to.  We made a couple of friends that way whom are cruising with us again next year.  The tables are far enough away that they can be private but close enough to talk to.  In our opinion it is far superior to the MDR. I agree that you can get faster service if you like but you can also have a leisurely dinner if you like, your waiter will listen to what you want. We loved Club Class Dining, and look forward to our next cruise with this October. 

 

 

Edited September 11, 2019 by Gracie115

[suekel]

I loved Club Class the only time we've had it.  (Trying it again in January).  They actually saved a table for us every night, we usually ate @ 7:30.  Same waiter who knew us after one night.  I felt so spoiled and pampered.  In addition to breakfast on my balcony, this is a nice suite perk.  

[Gracie115]

On 9/4/2019 at 1:11 AM, idahospud said:

Here is an exciting addition to the Suite benefits on the Royal Princess right now! They are testing it here (and only here) and will be making decisions on whether to continue it based on feedback from the Suite guests on the Royal Princess.

 

The Concierge Lounge now has its own cocktail hour from 5 pm and 7 pm. They have the standard Concierge Lounge food and snacks but alcoholic and nonalcoholic DRINKS ARE FREE. There is a bartender in there during that time. While not a full bar he does have several bottles to work with. It has been a great addition to the benefits and has been almost full every night.

 

Remember, ONLY being tested on Royal Princess, ONLY in the Concierge Lounge, and ONLY for FULL Suite guests. 

 

This is great news and I hope Princess finds it successful and introduces it on their other Royal class ships(the only ones with Concierge lounges)  This is a perk we have enjoyed on Celebrity and one we found lacking on Princess.....this along with Club Class Dining goes along way to equalizing the perks the two cruise lines offer their full suite guests. 

Edited September 11, 2019 by Gracie115

[voljeep]

1 hour ago, Cruise Raider said:

 

Oh my ... I loved club class dining.  But, there is nothing to prevent you from dining in the MDR.  I'm not sure if you can use the traditional dining, though, as you'd have to speak with the maitre'd as soon as you board to see if there are any openings in one of those rooms.  You are certainly welcome to go and wait in line in the anytime MDR, though.  They are more than willing to allow you to share a table with others.  

And, you can certainly ask at the club class dining if there are others that are willing to share a table.  The worst that they can tell you is there is nobody else that wants to share at that time.  And, the club class is a lot more intimate with the same sets of waiters, so you will probably get to know most, if not all of them, half way through your cruise.  We were consistently seated in a table with the same waiters.  

And as far as being better than traditional dining, I think it is world's better ... mostly due to the no waiting aspect.  However, they do provide one special dish every night prepared fresh that were much better than we've had in the MDR section, IMO.  Aside from that, the tables are set more elegantly with nicer table cloths and wine glasses.  If you are going to order a nice bottle of wine, it really pays to drink it out of a nice glass, a Riedel style glass.  I don't mean to come off as snooty ... but we were completely spoiled with club class, the one and only time we had it.  I certainly don't see how you wouldn't enjoy  it.  

I wish they would/could offer club class without having to book a mini ( hate the shower/tub combo ) or a full suite ( hate the price , love the separate shower and tub our one and only time )

 

maybe a deluxe premium club class balcony ???

[memoak]

9 minutes ago, voljeep said:

I wish they would/could offer club class without having to book a mini ( hate the shower/tub combo ) or a full suite ( hate the price , love the separate shower and tub our one and only time )

 

maybe a deluxe premium club class balcony ???

There is limited space in CC dining area. If you increase the amount of tables it is going to push into the MDR and would not be as intimate as it is now.  In my opinion

[voljeep]

7 minutes ago, memoak said:

There is limited space in CC dining area. If you increase the amount of tables it is going to push into the MDR and would not be as intimate as it is now.  In my opinion

and I totally agree ...

[Gracie115]

On 9/6/2019 at 11:41 AM, Debbdo said:

Thank you so much! 15 days and counting! This is our 3rd suite, 2nd aft and 1st aft wrap around balcony. Love the suite life and very grateful that we can do it once a year. My husband has already "warned" me that the suite life will probably end when he retires so I plan to enjoy it while I can!! 

 

Hope you've had a wonderful cruise!!  We will be boarding Regal in NYC on 10/31 and are in a full suite.  We were wondering if you were escorted to the Concierge lounge when you boarded?  

 

[Debbdo]

2 hours ago, Gracie115 said:

 

Hope you've had a wonderful cruise!!  We will be boarding Regal in NYC on 10/31 and are in a full suite.  We were wondering if you were escorted to the Concierge lounge when you boarded?  

 

 

Boarding was a bit of a nightmare. We were not escorted to anything and had to wait outside over an hour to board. They say it was because of a Coast Guard inspection, but we felt it was handled poorly by Princess. By the time we boarded (after 3:00 pm) we were not happy campers. I have heard things went smoothly with embarkation ever since, so I hope that is the case for you. Other than a few minor issues, the cruise was great!  Have fun and let us know how you enjoyed the suite life. 

[Go-Bucks!]

13 hours ago, Gracie115 said:

 

Hope you've had a wonderful cruise!!  We will be boarding Regal in NYC on 10/31 and are in a full suite.  We were wondering if you were escorted to the Concierge lounge when you boarded?  

 

 

I'll be in a full suite on the 10/26 Regal cruise (got an upsell) but back down to a balcony for the 10/31 cruise...hoping for another suite upsell!😉

 

I usually sail in full suites and love breakfast in Sabatini's and club class dinners. But...I've always traveled with a friend and this time I'm solo in a suite. I'm picturing club class dinners being a bit awkward when everyone else there is coupled. 

Edited October 20, 2019 by Go-Bucks!