Mini-Suite v. Suite on CP???

[MNKessler]

Please Help!!!!

 

My fiancee and I are going on the Caribbean Princess at the end of September along with her sister and brother-in-law. They are getting a mini-suite and not changing.

 

My fiancee and I want to get the best cabin we can. Our choice is between a mini-suite on Dolphin Deck (I don't think we care that it is open from above, but we've never sailed on Princess before either so we've never experienced an open balcony) or a Vista Suite at the stern of the ship on Dolphin Deck for $2,000 more.

 

Which should we do? Is it pleasant sitting on your balcony and seeing the wake but not either side or towards the front? (It sounds like a strange view, but most of the Princess suites are located there so we're wondering if it is a nicer view than we are thinking.) Are the stern suites noisy from the engines? Vibration? Feel more ship movement? What are the drawbacks to a cabin located at the stern of CP?

 

We just feel that $2,000 more is a lot to pay if there are problems with the locations of the suites. We'd love the bigger room and extra amenities/services (ok, mainly just the free laundry service; it's really the larger room we want), but not if it will be offset by a worse room for other reasons.

 

Thanks a lot for all advice/suggestions.

 

Michael - Long Island, NY

[vince_g]

Michael,

 

The minisuites are really quite nice... you'll get that nice sitting area with a loveseat. You don't have to sit or lie on the bed to watch TV. Also the bigger bathroom with a tub is nice. Also if you want to sunbathe on your own balcony, Dolphin deck is perfect.

 

As for laundry, you can always use the self service or send in a couple of bags on the day they have the $15/bag deal. I would recommend you save the money for shore excursions and shopping.

[sun&sea]

Please Help!!!!

 

My fiancee and I are going on the Caribbean Princess at the end of September along with her sister and brother-in-law. They are getting a mini-suite and not changing.

 

My fiancee and I want to get the best cabin we can. Our choice is between a mini-suite on Dolphin Deck (I don't think we care that it is open from above, but we've never sailed on Princess before either so we've never experienced an open balcony) or a Vista Suite at the stern of the ship on Dolphin Deck for $2,000 more.

 

Which should we do? Is it pleasant sitting on your balcony and seeing the wake but not either side or towards the front? (It sounds like a strange view, but most of the Princess suites are located there so we're wondering if it is a nicer view than we are thinking.) Are the stern suites noisy from the engines? Vibration? Feel more ship movement? What are the drawbacks to a cabin located at the stern of CP?

 

We just feel that $2,000 more is a lot to pay if there are problems with the locations of the suites. We'd love the bigger room and extra amenities/services (ok, mainly just the free laundry service; it's really the larger room we want), but not if it will be offset by a worse room for other reasons.

 

Thanks a lot for all advice/suggestions.

 

Michael - Long Island, NY

 

I have had all types of cabins. First of all, you are right in saying $2000 is alot of additional money to spend for a larger room!!! Personally, I'd take the mini and book another cruise with the $2000! Don't get me wrong, the suites are nice. But so are the minisuites.

About the balcony. We have never minded the open balcony. The aft suite balcony is very private, the mini balcony on Dolphin are not. However, the actual 'view' of the ports, etc. is actually better on the side (my opinion). The way Princess ships are designed, its hard from the back to see anything but the rear! Not that that is bad. Its just hard to see around the side from a rear facing aft balcony.

Lastly, going with another couple, you will probably spend a good deal of time 'out and about' with them. Personally, I would save the $2000 for perhaps a honeymoon or just another cruise when it is just the two of you. Save the suite for a special occasion! Whatever you do, have a great time!;)

 

Janet

[Whimsy]

Here are some photos of a mini suite although this one is on the Emerald deck which is covered. There is still one left on the Emerald deck for the September 23 sailing.

 

http://good-times.webshots.com/album/559184216mMxiEP

 

Personally I would do my own laundry, use the bag special or bring a few extra clothes and save the $2000 for something else! $2000 would get you another week, do a B2B!!!

 

Edited to add: I just went to Princess and checked and that mini on the Emerald is gone. It was there this morning. I still would just get the mini vs. the full suite. That is a lot of money.

[jacksan1]

I hope I am not offending you by saying this, but $2,000 is a lot of money to get the "free" laundry. You would be better off using their full-service laundry and dry cleaning and saving the money.

 

As others have said, and this is just my personal opinion, but I would rather save the 2 grand and go for an additional cruise than to get a suite on this one sailing. But everyone is different.

[CruiseNut7]

Welcome to Cruise Critic! :)

 

I have to agree with the previous posters - $2,000 more for a 7 day sailing in a larger cabin wouldn't be worth it to us. That equates to another cruise for me - in a mini-suite!

 

We've just stayed in our third mini-suite .... we have had both the Emerald Deck and Dolphin Deck mini's ..... both were great.

 

One of our sailings was with my sister and brother-in-law on the Caribbean Princess. We had mini-suites next door to each other, the cabin steward opened the door between the balconies and we had a grand time .... breakfast together, cocktails all day long ..... OR all the private time we wanted as well. ;)

 

You should book the cabin you really want, but for me a mini-suite has plenty of room for two people and I highly recommend them. Best of luck in your decision!

[parisbully]

What is a "open balcony" We are in R406. We do have sides to our balcony, don't we? I am scared now. We have always gotten balcony cabins, but this is our first cruise with Princess...

[MNKessler]

On Princess, some of the balconies (such as the mini-suites on the Dolphin Deck) can be looked down upon from balconies on higher decks. There are still partitions between each balcony, so the privacy is there. Plus during the cruise everyone is not out on their balcony at the same time - nor are most people out on their balcony to gawk at the people they can see on the balconies below. It is just that 1) you have to be more careful when you are out on your balcony because you can be easily seen - so no naked sun bathing ;) and 2) if it rains, a covered balcony may be a little nicer because you can still stand or sit on the balcony whereas on an open or uncovered one, you'll get wet! Some people want a balcony where no one can see them and so they want a "closed" balcony while others actually prefer the open ones because they tend to get much more sun for tanning. It's an issue on Princess Cruises because their ships have lower decks flaring out a bit so that more balconies are in the sunshine.

 

If you click on these links, and look toward the back (stern) of the ship, you can clearly see how the two decks above the lifeboats have balconies that stick out further from the sides of the ship than the upper decks. So balconies on these decks are no covered from above and are considered open. The Caribe deck balconies tend to be larger and have 1/2 uncovered and 1/2 covered by the deck above.

 

http://members.csolutions.net/morrica/images/06-00-Grand_02.jpg

http://www.cruisesrfun.com/ChinaImages/Cruise_Pictures2/Balcony_2_10_23%20001.jpg

[MNKessler]

Thank you veryone for your advice (which was 100% unanimous and somehow seems obvious now!) We're going with the mini-suite.

 

Michael :)

[parisbully]

mnkessler, I love the photos. But now I am not too sure about our suite. We are on Riviera deck. It looks like there is quite a overhang from the (I think it is Lido) directly above us. Are you familiar with it? Looks like it might be dark and does it look directly down on the deck that sticks out right above the lifeboats?????

[Colo Cruiser]

mnkessler, I love the photos. But now I am not too sure about our suite. We are on Riviera deck. It looks like there is quite a overhang from the (I think it is Lido) directly above us. Are you familiar with it? Looks like it might be dark and does it look directly down on the deck that sticks out right above the lifeboats?????

 

 

 

Another thing brought up quite frequently is the noise from above, you will be under the pool area with the possibility of dragging chairs which in other reviews kept the cabin occupants up at night etc.

This is something I would want to know before I chose one of those cabins. :)

[MNKessler]

I, too, have read many complaints that the noise from the Lido deck just above these suites, can be noisy. In particular, late at night and very early in the morning the crew often stacks, unstacks, and arranges the deck chairs. When you are in your cabin and quiet (i.e., sleeping), you will likely hear it. Overall, it is not terribly noisy, but even being woken up once from it is too much. Personally, I would not stay in these cabins if I was sensitive to noise (which I am!)

 

And yes, you will look down on the balconies several decks below - not directly down onto the ocean. I remember enjoying the sight of the side of the ship moving through the water from our balcony on a Royal Caribbean ship. I'd miss this on a balcony on the Riviera Deck, but that's not true of everyone.

 

I see what you mean about the overhang. Unfortunately I don't know about that. I would hope (and I think) that it wouldn't make for a dark balcony. The balconies on the few decks below have ceilings that are the floors of the decks above. I think this is the same for the Riviera deck balconies. The side of the Lido deck, itself, looks different, but it also looks like you wouldn't know that (or notice it) from a balcony on the Riviera deck.

 

Unfortunately, I don't think Princess has done a very good job when it comes to their suites. Unlike many other lines, they have not put them in the best locations in terms of views, least noise, vibration (felt in the suites located at the stern), etc. But I think it also depends on how sensitive one is. Personally, these things would bother me but I know other people who don't even notice. Also, some people have told me they love the view of the wake of the ship, and for them, this is the best view of all. So the cabins at the stern would be ideal for them.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Michael

[OpenSea]

I read that you made your choice and are going with the mini-suite. Personally I don't think you can go wrong with either. I've stayed in a mini-suite on the Grand and the Vista suite on the Caribbean Princess. We didn't mind the open balcony with the mini and it was very roomy. Of course now we are spoiled by the suites and if we could afford it would choose those but alas....:cool:

 

I loved having the aft suite, totally private, HUGE deck and the wake noise was very soothing. We really felt like we had our own private space there and loved the spa tub along with the other amenities. Didn't run into any other noises from the ship. It was also cool as we backed into St. Martin so we had great views of the port.

 

Have a wonderful time!

[kkpcruiser]

 

I loved having the aft suite, totally private, HUGE deck and the wake noise was very soothing. We really felt like we had our own private space there and loved the spa tub along with the other amenities. Didn't run into any other noises from the ship. It was also cool as we backed into St. Martin so we had great views of the port.

 

Have a wonderful time!

 

Open sea

I am considering moving my reservation from a Riviera PH cat to a Vista suite on the Dolphin deck AFT. I understand the support beam and i am ok with that ..i just like the deck dimensions better..boxier rather than long and narrow which appears to be the case on the Riviera deck. We have never cruised AFt no r this low of a deck on a ship...so i am a little concerned about the change. I think vibration wouldn't bother us as most mentioned it is only on docking. I think we would love watching the wake!!

 

I should state this is an oct cruise...in case "hurricane season" matters

 

There have been comments about "blower/fan" noise and smells in the AFT area..is all of this just people being picky/whiny or are the criticisms justified?

[johnmik1]

Please Help!!!!

 

My fiancee and I are going on the Caribbean Princess at the end of September along with her sister and brother-in-law. They are getting a mini-suite and not changing.

 

My fiancee and I want to get the best cabin we can. Our choice is between a mini-suite on Dolphin Deck (I don't think we care that it is open from above, but we've never sailed on Princess before either so we've never experienced an open balcony) or a Vista Suite at the stern of the ship on Dolphin Deck for $2,000 more.

 

Which should we do? Is it pleasant sitting on your balcony and seeing the wake but not either side or towards the front? (It sounds like a strange view, but most of the Princess suites are located there so we're wondering if it is a nicer view than we are thinking.) Are the stern suites noisy from the engines? Vibration? Feel more ship movement? What are the drawbacks to a cabin located at the stern of CP?

 

We just feel that $2,000 more is a lot to pay if there are problems with the locations of the suites. We'd love the bigger room and extra amenities/services (ok, mainly just the free laundry service; it's really the larger room we want), but not if it will be offset by a worse room for other reasons.

 

Thanks a lot for all advice/suggestions.

 

Michael - Long Island, NY

FYI,CP-Sea Princess,CB-Caribbean Princess,CO-Coral Princess