Sleeping 4 in a cabin

[Ajat0921]

We just got off a NCL cruise with our kids, and started planning a new vacation. How do the balcony cabins work to sleep 4? My kids refuse to sleep in the same bed. Is there a drop down bunk or flip down bunk in the balcony cabins? We have never been on RC before, only Carnival and NCL many times. Both boys want to go on the bigger ships, the ones with all the bells and whistles. I have 2 years to plan this out, but the sooner then better right :)

[Djsmrs]

Some cabins (not all - and be careful when booking) have a Pullman bed that comes down from the ceiling.   We’ve sailed with ouR 2 kids in these rooms and have made good use of the Pullman and the sofa bed.  

[Tee & Chilli]

Depending on the age of the kids and pricing, you might consider 2 cabins.

[awestover89]

There are some rooms that sleep 4 by having the main bed (two twins that convert to a King) and a single sofa bed, others have 3rd and 4th pullman beds (beds that come out from the ceiling). There may be some that have a sofa bed and a pullman, I'm not 100% certain. You'll want to be careful of what you pick to make sure they won't have to share a bed (or book whatever and tell them they can either share a bed or not get a vacation)

[ATC cruiser]

Depending on when you cruise or what ship, it may not be much more expensive to get a separate cabin for the kids. Plus you get the extra bathroom, that’s priceless. There are connecting cabin options, or they can get a room directly across the hall. You can also book it as 1 child, 1 adult per cabin and change it once on board. Some of the bigger ships have family suites that have bunk beds in a separate room also. Lots of options available. Some require booking thru rci directly and not online.  

[jakeil7]

How old will they be when you cruise again?

[RockHoundTX]

It completely depends on the ship. In my experience, the older/smaller ships had more pull-downs while the newer ships (Ovation of the Seas) rely on a pull-out/sofa-bed. In either case, be mindful of the size of your kids since the sofa-beds are a little small and the pull-downs have a weight limit.  

[Cutigerlady]

I completely understand because my boys don’t sleep well together. We all suffer if my little one doesn’t sleep. 

 

We were on the Harmony and it was $400 more to get two cabins over us all staying in one room (one of my boys is 13, so he counted as an adult anyway)!  We had connecting cabins and they also took out the divider between the balconies which was awesome!  I don’t think we can ever go back to one cabin. 

 

I just booked a cruise cruise for Christmas and my travel agent booked us in rooms next to each other but not connecting.  She was able to put the kids in their own room which will save a trip to guest services to update the keys!  

[RickAinley]

We were on Harmony a month ago and wondered the same, however the 3rd and 4th beds were the pull out couch, except it didn't form a double, the base that pulled out had its own mattress and covers and was a few inches lower than the "seat" portion which was the other mattress. So in effect two thinner than a twin beds and the girls were fine and grateful they weren't sharing. (10 & 7).

[Grandma Dazzles]

1 hour ago, RockHoundTX said:

It completely depends on the ship. In my experience, the older/smaller ships had more pull-downs while the newer ships (Ovation of the Seas) rely on a pull-out/sofa-bed. In either case, be mindful of the size of your kids since the sofa-beds are a little small and the pull-downs have a weight limit.  

 

Pullmans have a weight limit, but it’s in the area of 275-300 pounds.  My son was playing football, 6’ 2” and around 230 pounds and slept well on one. 

[Grandma Dazzles]

4 hours ago, Ajat0921 said:

We just got off a NCL cruise with our kids, and started planning a new vacation. How do the balcony cabins work to sleep 4? My kids refuse to sleep in the same bed. Is there a drop down bunk or flip down bunk in the balcony cabins? We have never been on RC before, only Carnival and NCL many times. Both boys want to go on the bigger ships, the ones with all the bells and whistles. I have 2 years to plan this out, but the sooner then better right 🙂

 

Check the deck plans for the ships you are looking at.  There is a key that tells you the bed configuration. You might want to price two cabins, especially connecting; very convenient and two bathrooms.  

[Ourusualbeach]

4 hours ago, Ajat0921 said:

We just got off a NCL cruise with our kids, and started planning a new vacation. How do the balcony cabins work to sleep 4? My kids refuse to sleep in the same bed. Is there a drop down bunk or flip down bunk in the balcony cabins? We have never been on RC before, only Carnival and NCL many times. Both boys want to go on the bigger ships, the ones with all the bells and whistles. I have 2 years to plan this out, but the sooner then better right 🙂

Harmony, Symphony and all Quantum class ships do not have Pullman beds other than possibly a few suites or family staterooms. 

 

Oasis Allure as well as all ships Freedom class and below have cabins that have Pullman beds.

 

As others suggested compare the cost of 2 cabins especially if you are using a TA with group space. 

[luv2sailAgain]

We sailed on Harmony last summer.  There were 4 teenage girls in a cabin.  Two of the cousins decided that they would rather just keep the beds pushed together. The 3rd and 4th used the sofa.  The sofa was converted to a bed for the 3rd girl and then a trundle was pulled from under the sofa for the fourth. So the 3rd and 4th cousins had semi beds to themselves. It was wall to wall beds, but it worked.  We had balcony cabins.

Edited October 25, 2019 by luv2sailAgain

[Hoopster95]

1 hour ago, RickAinley said:

the 3rd and 4th beds were the pull out couch, except it didn't form a double, the base that pulled out had its own mattress and covers and was a few inches lower than the "seat" portion which was the other mattress. So in effect two thinner than a twin beds and the girls were fine and grateful they weren't sharing. (10 & 7).

 

1 hour ago, luv2sailAgain said:

The 3rd and 4th used the sofa.  The sofa was converted to a bed for the 3rd girl and then a trundle was pulled from under the sofa for the fourth. So the 3rd and 4th cousins had semi beds to themselves. 

 

Just so that the OP can see a picture of what you're speaking of....

 

 

Edited October 25, 2019 by Hoopster95

[Cel_cruise]

Our first family cruise on Royal we all stated in 1 room.  That cruise was booked last minute and options were limited.   

 

Our next cruise was planned in advance and it was actually the same price - maybe even cheaper - to get 2 adjoining balconies than one single one.   It was amazing!!

 

With your timeline - I would encourage you to check out that option too!

 

One other note - on Symphony the sofas are not traditional sleepers - they are more like trundle beds as shown above.  They can much more easily be 2 beds.   We traveled with a group of 4 last year who keeps one teenager at regular height and the other at trundle floor height to keep the peace!

[LuCruise]

I have a picture in my Symphony review (link below) of the sofa bed turning into a single bed with trundle pulled out next to it.  It also shows what they do with it during the day.  It worked well for us, especially with both kids getting their own mattress and space.  Only issue is it's tight walking past the trundle to the balcony, but that was just for a few hours in the evening do not a big deal .

 

As others stated, try pricing two rooms. We often find it's more expensive with two but we did have 2 connecting promenade rooms on Navigator and that was great just tie the two bathrooms.

[cb at sea]

You definitely need to check the deck plans for the specific cabin you want....don't just tell them it needs to "sleep 4"....you will want a cabin with a sofa bed  AND pullman, or 2 pullmans.  The deck plans show what kind of bedding is in each cabin.

[Ajat0921]

My boys will be 15 for our next cruise. one is already 5'9 the other 5'7. But thank you all for the advice. I might look into the across the hall interior room for them. more room for me.

[3monkeys4me]

30 minutes ago, Ajat0921 said:

My boys will be 15 for our next cruise. one is already 5'9 the other 5'7. But thank you all for the advice. I might look into the across the hall interior room for them. more room for me.

 

This is what we have done with our kids.  Ours were 15 and 13 for the last cruise (the youngest bunked with grandma). For us, 3 2 person cabins was cheaper than 2 cabins (one 2 berth and one 3 berth)  or a cabin that slept 5 so we invited Grandma along. Next cruise all three kids are across the hall from us, they will be 16, 14 and 11. The 16 year old is fairly small but my son is 5'10" and growing rapidly. With 4 adult sized people and one tween it is nice to have additional space. And an extra bathroom is a huge bonus. 

[not-enough-cruising]

2 hours ago, Ajat0921 said:

My boys will be 15 for our next cruise. one is already 5'9 the other 5'7. But thank you all for the advice. I might look into the across the hall interior room for them. more room for me.

Also since it seems you may be considering oasis class, look into getting the boys a boardwalk balcony state room across the hall from your ocean balcony state room. The kids will love the activity on the boardwalk that they can witness from the room

[3monkeys4me]

1 hour ago, not-enough-cruising said:

Also since it seems you may be considering oasis class, look into getting the boys a boardwalk balcony state room across the hall from your ocean balcony state room. The kids will love the activity on the boardwalk that they can witness from the room

 

This is what we have booked next on Allure. I think it seems like a great combo! I think my oldest would have preferred a CP balcony since she likes the quiet, but they didn't have any left that slept three.