Royal Suite/outside whirlpool/handicap kid

[mcjigs]

I have a handicapped 19yr old who is the size of a 10yr old and the mentality of a 2yr, she is in diapers, non verbal, can walk short distances and a cutie who makes our world complete!

 

We are planning our next cruise and must take her. We were wondering if anyone has stayed in the royal suite if they thought it was worth the money and how was the outside whirlpool? Is it big enough for two adults?:rolleyes:

 

We thought since we won't be able to go to the pool/whirlpools on deck very easily, this royal suite might be a good $ investment cause when she goes to sleep we can leave the balcony door open and jump into the whirlpool on our deck and have some much needed mom & dad time alone.

 

Boy, it's a load of extra money compared to the sky suite and other rooms so we would love input on these suites and what people past experience with them has been. Is it worth the money?

 

Thanks for the help,

~mary~

[ocngypz]

The suite is fabulous. Personally, I do not like the aft location. Too much walking.

 

The hot tub... well.... it's small. Depends how cozy you want to get!

[Bethwte]

I haven't stayed in one, but when in the penthouse suite, we became friends with the people in a suite right down the hall... The whirlpool was definitely what I'd call cozy for two people, but definitely feesable... If you just want some alone time though, I think any balcony room would be great. It's amazing what being outsite near the ocean relaxing in those chairs is like... I agree and disagree with the poster above about the aft location. The elavators are really close, and lead right to the dining room and upstairs to a central location in the buffet, but you are very far away from things like the theatre. It is a trade-off. To me, the size of the royal suite is much more of a factor than the hot-tub, but it's a personal choice only you can make. Also, bless you for what I know must be more than a full time job with your child! My mother works in special education, and I know how rough, yet rewarding it can be :)

[kitty9]

I just spent two weeks in 6142 on Summit which is a Royal Suite. It's a wonderful suite, very spacious with a very large living room that had two pull out queen size beds, two flat screen tv's, computer area, walk in closet (which is disappointingly small especially for two week cruises), a large bedroom with a dressing area and large bathroom with separate tub and shower and double sinks. The outside whirlpool is not much bigger than a regular bathtub, and it's not in the sun, but built next to the outside wall of the ship. The balcony is huge with full size lounge chairs and a full table with four side chairs. You can access the balcony via the living room or bedroom.

 

Is it worth the money? I think so, especially for three adults. You will find the extra room, both in the suite and on the balcony, to be perfect.

[WatchHill]

We had a Royal Suite, 6133, on a recent, 3/18, cruise on the Constellation. The outside whirlpool is a bit small for two; it's shallow compared to standard hot tubs and the controls were not marked. With an 8-person spa at home, this was nothing impressive. DH liked the indoor whirlpool in the bathroom, as it had more jets and was deeper - two could enjoy it - and have their privacy. Remember, the deck whirlpool backs up to the adjacent verandah....privacy is limited. Depending on the ship's positon, we did have sun on the verandah in the afternoon.

 

The location of the Royal Suites is conveniently near the aft elevators. There's an advantage using these elevators.......everyone seems to gravitate toward the glass elevators mid-ship, and there are times when they are filled and you find yourself waiting. My Mom is physically challenged and blind; the lack of courtesty extended by many able bodied passengers on the cruise was a sad commentary on their values. People pushed her aside to get onto the elevator, she had to walk to the back of a bus for a tour, and some passengers refused to move when she attempted to access seating in the main show lounge. [Excuse the former SPED ADM in me.] The crew, however, was wonderful as always. She is an Elite passenger and many of the crew went out of their way to say hello and recall her past trips with them.

 

The RS is well designed for dining in the room, two sofas and lounge chair for relaxing, duel access to the verandah, 2 TV's, double sinks in the bathroom, [though I didn't like the glass door on the shower - personal opinion - tough to open and close - and nothing to grab onto in the shower when it's rough]. The "walk-in closet" is very small, though the open shelves were great for finding my shoes.

 

Tough decision.....what about a FV? I know the cruise line likes to book families in these rooms, but a good TA could pull this off. Less costly and it gives you plenty of balcony and stateroom privacy.

 

Darcy

[Jim_Iain]

MCJIGGS - we stayed in RS6141 on Constellation. I have an online photo album at http://community.webshots.com/myphotos?action=viewAllPhotos&albumID=546717233&security=qUnUyn which has pictures of both the inside and outside jacauzzi's. I think the others description is accurate. They are like a big bathtub. Thought a picture would be worth a 1000 words.

[mcjigs]

:) Thank you for the wonderful input on the royal suite. Not sure what we are gonna do but it really helped me to think of things I hadn't thought of yet.

 

Also, great pictures of the room. Really enjoyed them.

 

Thanks to all,

~mary~

[mahdnc]

The suite is fabulous. Personally, I do not like the aft location. Too much walking.

 

 

Of course the Royal Suites on all 3 Century class ships aren't located aft, but alas, no hot tub.

[Fang]

I agree with the hot tub. We have been on three Royal Suites on the M Class and two times on the C class.

 

Its basicly a little bigger than a bath tub and is very cozy for two people.

[cechase]

We have booked RS6138 on Infinity for the 10 night Alaska cruise out of Vancouver in September.

 

We have had five RS on C class vessels, Century twice, Galaxy and Mercury twice. We decided to move up to the M class vessels because we had been bothered by noise from the pool deck directly above the penthouse deck on C class vessels.

 

Loved the photos!!!! My DW will be very pleased, even if the walk in closet does not appear to be as large as the RS on C class vessels. She will love the vanity.

[fleckle]

Mary, are you able to use the ship's baby-sitting services for your daughter? If so, you could save a lot of money by booking a handicap cabin or FV, and using the baby-sitter to provide you some of that much needed mom & dad time. It is our understanding that Celebrity uses responsible baby-sitters who have been carefully vetted. You can use walkie-talkies to stay in contact, enabling you to return to the cabin immediately if a problem should arise.

 

If you are reluctant to leave your daughter with a "stranger" you could start out by hiring the baby sitter for a few sessions to introduce her to your daughter while you stay with them for the first day or two.

[Bethwte]

Mary, are you able to use the ship's baby-sitting services for your daughter? If so, you could save a lot of money by booking a handicap cabin or FV, and using the baby-sitter to provide you some of that much needed mom & dad time. It is our understanding that Celebrity uses responsible baby-sitters who have been carefully vetted. You can use walkie-talkies to stay in contact, enabling you to return to the cabin immediately if a problem should arise.

 

If you are reluctant to leave your daughter with a "stranger" you could start out by hiring the baby sitter for a few sessions to introduce her to your daughter while you stay with them for the first day or two.

 

I hate to say it, but I disagree... while I'm sure X's babysitters are very capable, dealing with a normal young child, and dealing with one who is either mentally or physically hanicapped is very different. I think it requires one to be aware of a whole other realm of care, as well as much more patience, andd understanding at times. Sometimes it is very frustrating for a normal babysitter to try to work with a disabled child, and I would hate for your child to suffer in any way because of this. Just my opinion however... you as the parent will know what is right for your child :)

[mcjigs]

I really appreciate all these comments/help we've been getting.

Fleckle - it was a good idea about the babysitting but, I do in my case agree with Bethwte. Our daughter needs no tubes or special equipment like some disabled kids might need, (it's more like caring for a very tall 2 year old). But, we keep her world very sheltered. She is hard to read with her wants and needs and even if we leave her with older siblings she has grown up with her entire life after 2 days she starts to get ill and forces herself to throw up. I could never leave her with someone I didn't know. Not saying the people on Celebrity aren't outstanding, (I'm sure they are). She hates to eat and spits and sputters her way through the slightest meal and will pull her hair or hit herself if frustrated. This would be very difficult for someone to handle if not trained in this area. It's tough to handle even as a loving mother.

But, most of the time she is a love and we won't let this disability slow us down. We love cruising and have been on one with the five of us (we have 3 kids, the other two are older) with Carnival 2 years ago and have a December 2006 on Millennium already paid for with all of us. I'm looking forward to see the difference between Carnival and Celebrity.

Now we are trying to plan this 2007, 25th anniversary for the three of us if we can decide what room to get. We want to go to Europe and the two grown kids will not be able to join us. So it becomes the three of us for the first time. But what room to get.... and we must decide before the 2007 prices come out and book up! Decisions....decisions... ~mary~