Mariner D1/Inside vs. Junior Suite?

[duncanmaria]

We are booked into an aft Junior Suite on the Mariner's 1/20/08 Eastern Caribbean sailing. We are a family of four - myself, DW, DD (11) and DS (9). We booked the JS for the extra space and to be on the aft with the large balcony. This past January, we were also booked into a JS on the Grandeur but got upgraded to a Royal family Suite! Obviously, we are now spoiled!! I'm afraid the JS will not be big enough for the four of us, particularly since the convertable sofa is not full size and RCI claims there is not enough room in the aft JS for a rollaway. (The aft JS is slighly narrower but longer than it's portside or starboard counterparts.)

 

Should we change our booking to a D1 Superior Oceanview connected to an inside? This will save us about $180 and we will gain about 70 square feet, the extra beds, an extra bathroom and a small extra "living area". We will lose the large balcony, the bigger/nicer bathroom with tub, a little bit of "open space" in the living area and whatever perks come with the JS. Does the D1 have the mini-fridge because we absolutely need that?

 

We really hate to give up the aft JS with its' little perks but we don't want to be sardines in a can without enough sleeping space either!

 

What should we do?

[Cam6959]

I would go with an extra bathroom. The only perk your missing is the tub with a JS and larger balcony. The extra bathroom will be so much more worth it! IMHO Have a great time! :D

[Phaedra_11]

I'd take the inside/D1 cabins.

[firefly333]

Does a superior Oceanview have a balcony at all? If not I wouldnt want to give that up. Keep watching and maybe they will have a special on an inside nearby that will work for the kids?

 

Hard decision. Id keep the junior suite myself, even if we were squashed in.

[duncanmaria]

Does a superior Oceanview have a balcony at all? If not I wouldnt want to give that up. Keep watching and maybe they will have a special on an inside nearby that will work for the kids?

 

Hard decision. Id keep the junior suite myself, even if we were squashed in.

 

Thanks, eveyone for your reponses so far!

 

The Superior Oceanview is 210 s.f. and has a 42 s.f. balcony. The inside has 153 s.f. Brings the total square footage of the two rooms to 363 s.f., not including the balcony. The JS is 299 s.f.

 

Our family is growing older and it may be difficult to sleep all four of us comfortably in a JS, especially without a rollaway. I'm leaning towards the two connecting cabins but will be sad if we lose the big aft balcony, the larger bathroom and the "open roominess" of the JS. Also, we HAVE to have a fridge and not sure the D1 has one. Pretty darned sure the inside doesn't!

[cb at sea]

I would always get a separate room for the kiddies--mom and dad need privacy on vacation!!!! The extra bathroom is a must, as well.

[la_croisiere_s'amuse]

As much as we love the JS, in this case I think I'd have to agree -- go for the D1 & inside. JS are great for the two of us, but we always get a larger suite whenever we have company.

 

Plus, as it's been pointed out, the extra bathroom can be a life saver!

 

EDIT: I just went back and saw that you "have" to have a fridge. If you mean that literally, then I'm afraid you need to stick with the JS. :( Otherwise, I know that some people bring a roll-on cooler onboard, and from what I've read, the room stewards are pretty good about keeping them supplied with ice.

[Cam6959]

This might be a double post. All D1s I have been in or seen has had both a balcony and a refrigerator.

[Iamthesea]

A few years ago, we reserved the D1 on the corner aft (1688 or 1388) and an inside across the hall for our children. I don't even know if these would be available for your sailing, but the D1 was the size of a JS, without the tub and it had the large balcony! ;)

 

I would most definitely get the two staterooms.

[la_croisiere_s'amuse]

This might be a double post. All D1s I have been in or seen has had both a balcony and a refrigerator.

 

Really?? Interesting . . . my sister's on the Mariner didn't, she had to use ours (we were in a JS). Maybe that was just a fluke. :confused:

[duncanmaria]

The fridge in the D1 might be the tie-breaker. How can I confirm that there is one?

[duncanmaria]

Another Mariner question.

After the upcoming drydock, will all cabins have flat screen TV's with DVD players?

 

Still trying to confirm the refridgerator question as well.

[vickiw0318]

The RCI website for the Mariner says that the D1's, E1's and E2's include minibars. I am guessing that means refrigerators.

[jdmaillet]

We just returned. We had a JS for us and booked the kids in an inside across the hall. My sis and dn were in an inside down the hall. We thought the JS was huge and a pleasant surprise considering I thought it was on par with a Cat6 with Disney.

 

My niece and dd wanted to spend a night together so they stayed on the hideabed in our room. It was terrible. Hard as a rock. Not long enough for their legs (they are teens). Really awful. I told DH that it was good to know for the future. In my opinion, I would not put 4 people in a JS with two sleeping on the hideabed-- unless we are talking really small kids.

 

Jenn

[duncanmaria]

Thank you for the great replies! We've decided to go with the D1 and connecting Inside and are waiting to hear back from our TA.

 

Can anyone recommend any good links to photos of the D1 (other than the generic RCI photos)?