Terrace Suites - Pros & Cons

[bsrkent]

We are long time cruisers and frequent RSSC, both Voyager and Mariner all balconies, mostly forward.

We want to try SS and are considering the rather unique Terrace suite on Shadow. Would those of you on this board that have actually sailed in one of these suites on Shadow or Whisper please share your thoughts about them... both the good and the not so good. We might like neighbors!

TIA

[WesW]

We have sailed on the Shadow in a terrace suite and enjoyed the advantage of having a balcony, albeit

a shared balcony...we still got to toast each port during the sailaway with our neighbors

but without the privacy of having your own balcony. A disadvantage is you

are not suppose to put charis our on the shared balcony (believe fire prevention) thus if you enjoy dining on your balcony, relaxing--reading a book it may be considered a negative. Having sailed both in a Veranda and Terrace, we prefer the ulitimate privacy of a Veranda, which is what we're booked in on the Spirit's maiden crossing.

 

btw..the last time we sailed in a terrace suite they were not called terrace suites and

there was not extra cost from a vista cabin--they were a great deal then...a good deal

now.

[Goldens4]

I agree with Col. Wes. We had a Terrace when it was priced the same as a Vista. After having it, we prefer a Verandah. We enjoy cocktails and breakfast on our own balcony.

[avalon1025]

I enjoyed the Terrace suite, but would not be so concerned if I could not get one over a vista. The best thing about them is they are on deck 5 vs deck 4. The door to the outside was nice, but I found I did not use it that much, certainly not as if it was a private balcony and you could leave the door open and come and go. Its nice if you can get one, great when they were classified as Vistas.

[meow!]

Before 2008, when the deck 5 shared balconies were classified vista suites, they were the most vied for. Despite the lack of furniture and privacy on the shared balcony, you get to open the door (windows on deck 4 are not openable), breathe the fresh air, listen to the soothing rhythm of the waves, and enjoy unobstructed view (which is actually wider than balconied suites with the partitions). Your neighbours are not likely to intrude on you -- most Silversea passengers are reasonable people.

 

Besides, on the Shadow/Whisper, deck 5 cabins lead directly to the shops and front desk, with easy access to everything. It is the best location on the ship, and steady in poor weather (not being high up). All the terrace suites are midship, and other than the shared balcony, they are identical to the midship verandahs right across the aisle, at 15% lower fare (25% lower before 2008).

 

On the Shadow/Whisper, the deck 4 vistas are a bit secluded, you have to go up one deck, walk across the midship section and back down one deck to go to the main restaurant. They are therefore a bit less convenient. From the deck plan drawings of the Cloud/Wind, deck 4 vistas are less secluded, and you can walk directly on that deck to the main restaurant, and to the main elevator column to everywhere else. So the problem with a vista on the Cloud/Wind should be less than with a deck 4 vista on the ShadowWhisper.

 

What I am saying is that a terrace suite is a good buy now, and a great buy when it was classifed as a vista. By the way, with the newbuild Spirit, the price differential between a vista and a verandah has been reduced from 20% (0.8:1.0) to only 10% (0.9:1.0), and there will be only a dozen of them in all. It looks like Silversea will use a large fraction of these for entertainers, lecturers, etc., leaving only the odd passenger (e.g. single supplements) in the few vistas.

[edrudd]

Well, if you get one of these, I suggest you visit a Wallgreens or equivalent upon embarkation and buy two folding beach chairs. You can figure out what to do withem.

 

ED

[bsrkent]

Thanks to all you guys...

I guess I should not be surprised that Col Wes experienced this... he'll probably experience everything cruising in his 105 year life expectancy! Enjoy your upcoming TA.

It seems the biggest con is no chairs; and it is pretty hard to swallow the fire regulation answer, so how might a resourceful military officer have solved this problem?

[WesW]

Bsrkent, You're very welcome & we look forward to our two TA's in 2010 thanks for the well wishes. As for chairs on the terrace suites here is what we did...since we were on the Shadow with another couple, every day, when we wanted to place chairs on our shared terrace balcony...we used what Army uses in Barracks to check for security--Charge of Quarters (CQ). Our friends were very helpful, so we simply posted the Kim (as a CQ pls see: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20081116202906AAqmiNo

 

on one side of Deck5 where shared balconies start, and posted Kim on the opposite end of Deck 5..thus when the SS personnel were coming by to check to ensure no chairs were out, Kim or Alice whistled loudly, then we quickly & covertly placed our chairs back in our suite..NOT. In reality, we enjoyed a glass of bubbly

during disembarkation from each port, and as Meow nicely describes, occassionaly

enjoyed the tranquility/sounds of the open ocean on sea days,

[yogagal47]

we have had one on both Whisper and more recently on the Shadow in Alaska where we had fellow traveling companions right next door. If you are a photographer they are great as you will have an unobstructed view for your photo ops(private balconies have those walls).

I found some of those white plastic chairs on the "secret" balcony on deck 6 and bought them down to our terrace during our Alaska cruise. They were never removed. See if your TA can get you a "terrace" upgrade for the price of a vista. That would be a great deal!

[originalmurph]

We are sailing next week, and this thread was most helpful since we got "upgraded" to these cabins. I have to ask .. what the secret balcony on Deck 6 is (independent of whether or not I duplicate the chair feat) :)

[meow!]

You must have tried hard to find this thread from two years ago, and particularly impressive since you are new to this board. However, what are you referring to as "secret balcony" on deck 6? We don't see any on the Shadow/Whisper, nor on the Spirit. If you are referring to the Cloud/Wind, from the deck plan drawing, the "balconies' behind cabins 640 and 643 appear to be just balony spaces outside of public (lobby) area.

[Wellseasoned]

There is indeed a "secret" balcony on deck six portside on both the Shadow and Whisper. It does not show on the deck plans. The door is next to the forward stairs and elevator on deck 6, just aft of the laundromat area. The deck plans show the laundromat extending to the edge of the ship, but it does not. The balcony is out there. It is about the length of two standard balconies and is very handy for viewing things from the port side without having to go on deck. This is why we usually book a starboard mid ship veranda on deck 6. You can just run across the hall for a view or photo. This again came in very handy last month during the Whisper's Panama Canal crossing. This balcony is usually empty. Sometimes an off duty crew member will curl up there to read. But it is open to all. It is not furnished.

[ging466]

There is indeed a "secret" balcony on deck six portside on both the Shadow and Whisper. It does not show on the deck plans. The door is next to the forward stairs and elevator on deck 6, just aft of the laundromat area.

 

Thankx Wellseasoned for letting us know. I can't wait to check out the 'secret balcony' now.:)

 

Cheers

Jennifer