Advice needed on inside cabin

Check to make sure your inside cabin has no bunks against the wall. Last time we had an inside it had the 2 extra beds above and was so tight that we banged our heads on them every time we got up! That was on the Regal or Royal, I'm not sure which.

OP: if you want to avoid the bunk beds, look at Cruise Critic's deck plans (Google is your friend). The inside cabins with bunks have a red dot.

We love the Aloha/Riviera deck aft (depends on the ship and NOT the Royal class ships). There are only 6 insides without bunk beds. There's a stairway at the end of the hall that leads to the Terrace Pool. Up another set of steps to the Outrigger Bar and the buffet. Great location.

In all my cruises I have always got an outside balcony. In more than 40 cruises once norovirus . When you are confined to cabin for 2 or 3 days I don’t feel like I am in jail. Can’t imagine what it would be like in such circumstances in a inside cabin. Mike

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I really don't have a problem with an inside cabin but my DH cannot stand having no natural light so we usually book an obstructed OV cabin on the Emerald deck. There are some that have excellent views out the window and they are really not a lot more expensive than an inside cabin. Be careful of what's below you that can cause noise, though. We've stayed in several of these before on the Grand and never had any complaints.

Pro: usually a LOT cheaper and plenty natural light if you choose the right cabin

Con: no balcony for fresh air, for tender ports (I think Maui will be your only one), they may drop the tender next to your window for use -- and it is noisy!! Also, crew members will be servicing these lifeboats and tenders, so don't be surprised by seeing them right outside your window. Be sure draw your curtains for privacy.

Check out this site for best obstructed view cabins (they are not all created equal): https://sites.google.com/site/cabinviewbyrenmar/golden-grand-star-princess

If you do go with the inside cabin, we like the ones that are midship just aft of the middle elevators on the Caribe deck. Nice and quiet location and never too many decks away from where you will want to be during the day.

Be aware that one of the disadvantages of the Grand is that it doesn't have a center staircase for passenger use up beyond deck 7. Thus, if you choose midship and avoid elevators, you will have to hike forward or aft to get to a set of stairs. I only mention this because the midship elevators are usually even more crowded than usual because of the lack of stairs. And, in the aft section of the ship, there is oftentimes a bottle neck in front of the wheelhouse bar / photo gallery because of traffic patterns ... again, because of the no stairwell issue.

That being said, the seas are generally known to be rough going out SF for at least 2 days and coming back to Ensenada for the last couple of days and then again coming back up to SF. This is why I would recommend a midship cabin in case of any seasickness problems you might suffer from. If that isn't a problem, I would book a deck that has direct access to the aft pool on the Aloha deck. I would choose one of the aft cabins on the Baja deck, just because I like having a cabin above me (as opposed to a public deck). But, there is a post on this thread from Party Barbie that states she likes the Aloha deck aft inside cabins ... she would know as she sails on the Grand a quite a bit.

I would avoid any cabin that was directly under the pool. We made the mistake of doing that before on Princess and the wall behind our headboard shook like crazy. Now, come on ... it was the water value to the pool and hot tubs running right behind our cabin wall. It was awful. I would look for a cabin that had a cabin above and below it.

I'm a little claustrophobic so we don't book inside cabins. When we return to our balcony cabin the first thing I do is open the curtains as wide as I can.

That said, the main thing would be to look at what is on the decks above and below you. The last inside cabin we had was above the theater and it was noisy.

We booked a guarantee room 1a category inside (on sapphire) and our room has now been assigned. Turns out to be one with a red dot on the deck plan - so I'm guessing this will sleep 4. Since there's only 2 of us I hoped this might mean more room. But now I'm reading about bunk beds I'm beginning to wonder. Previously I've been in rooms where extra beds drop down from the ceiling, so what make Sapphires bunk bed rooms any worse ? Are the extra beds 'permanent fixtures' ?

We booked a guarantee room 1a category inside (on sapphire) and our room has now been assigned. Turns out to be one with a red dot on the deck plan - so I'm guessing this will sleep 4. Since there's only 2 of us I hoped this might mean more room. But now I'm reading about bunk beds I'm beginning to wonder. Previously I've been in rooms where extra beds drop down from the ceiling, so what make Sapphires bunk bed rooms any worse ? Are the extra beds 'permanent fixtures' ?

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If we were going to book an inside cabin, we would book one as close as possible to a Suite because they are normally in a good area of the ship. ;)

Look on Princess for sideways staterooms. They’re not very many but they a slightly larger. One downside with a sideways staterooms is that when the door is opened your bed is right there. If I’m considering a inside stateroom a sideways stateroom is what I look for first. They sell out often.

I agree turning on the TV to the bridge camera is a great idea as someone mentioned when it gets light outside the stateroom gets light too.

Tom😎

We love the Aloha/Riviera deck aft (depends on the ship and NOT the Royal class ). There are only 6 insides without bunk beds. There's a stairway at the end of the hall that leads to the Terrace Pool. Up another set of steps to the Outrigger Bar and the buffet. Great location.

Huh?!,

This is a horrible section of the ship, We've booked this location quite a few times and have always hated it. In fact, we are booked in this section of cabins once again on our upcoming sailing. Absolutely dreading the thought of being located there again.

I would never give anybody the advice to book in this area.;);)

Inside stateroom Pro: “Hanky Panky” won’t be seen by others on other passing ships.

Inside stateroom Con: “Hanky Panky” won’t be seen by others on other passing ships.

The pick is yours. :halo::evilsmile:

Been on the Grand to Hawaii many times, always in an inside cabin because of the cost savings. While a balcony is great we don’t spend enough time to make it worthwhile.

That said, if I could afford it I’d travel in a full suite for Sabatini’s breakfast and Club class dining.

We usually get a plaza deck inside. Close to the international cafe, Vines and dinner.

When we get a mini suite it’s been on Dolphin, Caribe or Baja and usually for a special occasion, or traveling with friends who prefer balconies

We Always try to get rooms with cabins above and below and no white spaces on the map (service areas which might be noisy), being by elevators has never been a noise problem.

When on the Grand and only traveling with 2 people in an inside cabin be sure the max capacity for the room is 2 otherwise the bunks for 3rd and 4th passengers will protrude from wall

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Huh?!,

 

This is a horrible section of the ship, We've booked this location quite a few times and have always hated it. In fact, we are booked in this section of cabins once again on our upcoming sailing. Absolutely dreading the thought of being located there again.

 

I would never give anybody the advice to book in this area.;);)

If you hate that section of the ship, why do you keep booking into it? :confused::confused:

We always ask our TA to get us a cabin on a deck where the decks above and below have cabins only; hence, we select a specific cabin, never a guaranty. We also ask for something mid-aft or aft to make it easier to get up to the sports area (for our kids) and for the buffet (namely me:D).

Skai - very clever wording! Glad to know since we are booked in that location next summer. ;)