First Princess cruise booked

[NoVa Mimi]

So many people on this board have been so helpful with my previous questions :)

We are making a move from Royal Caribbean to Princess (Emerald) next summer and I have booked cabin A750. I have read so much about the various cabins, vents, beams and beds! I am a bit concerned about the cabin I have chosen. Does the vent present a noise problem? As far as I know, the beam does not affect this cabin, am I correct? Also, are the beds on Princess really as bad as I've heard? I thought perhaps with this ship being so new that perhaps the beds would be up to "industry standard" by now. We are really looking forward to our first Princess cruise, I just want to be sure that these issues really are not issues. Thank you all again for all of your help!

[Colo Cruiser]

Congrats on the booking, we have stayed in several aft cabins and I don't believe that any vent noise is any louder then the wake noise. :)

[Pythian]

We’ve sailed on the Baja deck next to the Aft vent, and although you can indeed hear it, it is not overly noisy. The wake covers a lot of the background noise – but you do (and will) notice the vent (it’s an intake, so not pushing anything toward you ….).

 

Having an Aft cabin over-rides any noise issues (minor as they might be) since the ride and view is so great from there. You will have a really big deck too…. So, enjoy!

 

The only worry I would have is that there is a pool right over your cabin, so you might well hear some noise from your balcony from that. However, the stern pool and sun areas tend to be utilized by the adults more-so than the kids.

[caber]

I have been on Emerald and Sea Princess and have loved the beds on both. I slept like a baby. It depends on what you like.

[Lemonslikethefruit]

So many people on this board have been so helpful with my previous questions :)

We are making a move from Royal Caribbean to Princess (Emerald) next summer and I have booked cabin A750. I have read so much about the various cabins, vents, beams and beds! I am a bit concerned about the cabin I have chosen. Does the vent present a noise problem? As far as I know, the beam does not affect this cabin, am I correct? Also, are the beds on Princess really as bad as I've heard? I thought perhaps with this ship being so new that perhaps the beds would be up to "industry standard" by now. We are really looking forward to our first Princess cruise, I just want to be sure that these issues really are not issues. Thank you all again for all of your help!

 

We haven't experienced any "bed" problems on our cruises. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised after reading posts about the beds. We slept fine!

[NoVa Mimi]

Thank you both very much :) What about the beds on this ship? Are they really terrible?

I appreciate all of your kind replies!

[CruisingJs]

Princess mattresses are just very, very firm. If you like a firm mattress, you will wonder what everyone has been fussing about. However, if you're used to a pillow top or a memory foam topper, try having two egg crates put on your bed. Otherwise, you'll wake up with a stiff neck or sore shoulder. Most of us are willing to put up with a little discomfort to be on a cruise. :p

[gertz]

Nothing wrong with Princess beds. If you complain enough they will bring you a new mattress.

Jack

for the lovely

[NoVa Mimi]

Thank you all for all the help! I must say, you all over here on the Princess boards are very kind and helpful (VERY refreshing after some of the answers to questions over at Royal Caribbean). I feel comfortable actually asking questions :)

 

It's not that I am overly hung up on mattresses, it's just that we used to have little more than cot type "mattresses" (if you want to call them mattresses) and I hoped never to have to endure them again after paying the $ for a cruise, I really enjoy a good night's sleep while on vacation. From your descriptions, I think things will be just fine.

 

This will be our first aft cabin ever. I've heard people say how much they enjoy them, so I am really looking forward to having one!

 

We are also very excited to be making the change over to Princess. Too many changes over at Royal Caribbean, and we are even at Diamond status there. Their loyalty to repeat customers has gone down a great deal.

 

If there is anything else anyone would be willing to share with a Princess newbie, I'd be really grateful for any advice and information you all could offer!

 

Thanks again!

[sunshine426]

My bed at home has a pillow top and I use a memory foam pillow. I still find Princess beds to be very comfortable. I had planned on asking for an egg crate, but once I tested out the bed, I didn't need it. I have asked for a different pillow before. I can't remember what my issue was with the pillow, I think I found it a bit too firm.

 

Lot's of people complain abt Princess Coffee as well, so I was freaking out that I would spend two weeks with a miserable bed and horrid coffee on our fist Princess Cruise. Again this proved to be a non issue for us, and we both enjoy our coffee at the house. While I do think the coffee could be improved on, I love not having to make my own, and just picking up the phone and it is delievered to my cabin in less than 15 minutes:). No beans to grind, no grounds to deal with.

[Worn out mailman]

Having only cruised RCCL ships before our first Princess cruise on Emerald's sister Ruby in March, I can tell you I think you'll enjoy Emerald. It reminded me of a much larger Radiance class ship, with some of the amenities of a Voyager class ship, without all the buried venues. I hope you like it.

[Woobstr112G]

We were Celebrity cruisers before we tried princess, for the first time, last October. After our cruise on the Emerald we did the Diamond three months later. Now we are looking forward to our Med-T/A on the Ruby in 56 short days. You will absolutely love princess. With the exception of our cabin steward on the Diamond, ever aspect of our experiences with princess has been outstanding. Even our MDR food was outstanding. Waitstaff on the Diamond, including the head waiter, was the best we ever had.....

 

Enjoy your first princess cruise.....:):):)

 

Bob

[NoVa Mimi]

Thank you all for your replies, they have all been very helpful.

Rob, thank you for the comparison, in fact our choice was between the Serenade and the Emerald and you have been on both.

After all of your responses, I know that I've made the right decision in going with the Emerald!

[ggprincess2004]

I would suggest you spend some time at www.princess.com and check out the deck plans for the Emerald. It's kind of like memorizing the route before starting out on a long car trip.....helps you get your bearings. If you haven't found them yet, just hit the "find and compare cruises" tab, then near the bottom of that screen, click on ships, then click on Emerald, and then deck plans. You can use the little drop down selection to go deck by deck, and move across the by deck by using your mouse to "glide" the view.

 

There are some great things on Emerald, and if you know generally where they are - deck/forward/mid/aft - it will make your first few days onboard a bit easier and more relaxing. We loved the Emerald and are wrestling with the answer to "What is your favorite Princess ship?" after sailing her in January - Coral is in danger of being displaced. :)