Aft Dolphin mini-suite "non-standard"

A lot of questions pop up about these mini-suites. When I researched for a recent trip on the Star, I found dead links to the pictures that show what to expect. So, since I was just in one of these cabins, I took lots of pictures.

My take on this cabin:

The balcony is ENORMOUS.

The "no vanity" is simply that there is no shelf under the usual sink countertop (still plenty of room for stuff). There is no bath tub. The shower is "wheelchair" accessible with a fold-down seat & a nifty hand-held shower head. Ask for an extra towel to catch water that the drains miss. The bathroom is so big, if you stand in the middle and spread your arms, you will not touch any walls.

And if you want a queen instead of twins, don't let the "twin bed only" stop you. I read somewhere on CC that it is possible to arrange the beds as a queen, when we asked the steward to do this, she said she'd never seen it done but was willing to try. The new configuration makes a narrow (but not unreasonable) space to walk from one side to the other. The only thing that was a small issue - it was hard to watch TV in bed.

One of the nicest things was a complete surprise. As we walked down the hall looking for our cabin on the first day - we got to the end of the corridor and ran out of doors!! "Where is ours???" Turned the corner and there it was, in a small corridor across from an aft balcony cabin and a suite. We never saw our corridor neighbors. No foot traffic at all. And 3 times, the room service person went through the bathroom door when trying to leave the cabin, 'cuz the bathroom door is where the entry door is usually located.

It was a great cabin and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

The end of the road...

Our door

More in a second.:)

Closet and bed before transformation

TV & closets

Entry door on left, bathroom door in right (sorry about the focus)

Desk area

Sitting area

Before the change to a queen

More in a sec...apparently can only do 6 at a time.

Now it is a queen

The space to walk by the bed

Not huge, but OK

A different view of the queen

The bath room from the door - notice the size of the door:eek:

The shower

Back in a sec

The toilet

The balcony from the forward toward the aft end

Balcony from the aft end toward the front

Another view of the balcony.

OK, there are the pix I took (sorry about the focus on a lot of them, I take lousy pictures).

DH said I should have kept the secret, now we will have trouble getting this cabin when we cruise. Leave room for me, OK:D:D

Nice to see the sign for D737 which is where we were in March. We actually took a peek inside the one you stayed in and it was made up as a queen. The steward said that most people asked him to change the twins to a queen. It was definitely a different layout than the other minis.

Wow, I am so happy you posted these pics. I am in the same cabin on the Sapphire in January. I hope we get the small sofa, too.

Wow, I am so happy you posted these pics. I am in the same cabin on the Sapphire in January. I hope we get the small sofa, too.

You will...the sofa is smaller than the standard mini and has cloth upholstery. We went in a standard mini on the cabin crawl and they had vinyl (yuck). Enjoy!

Nice to see the sign for D737 which is where we were in March. We actually took a peek inside the one you stayed in and it was made up as a queen. The steward said that most people asked him to change the twins to a queen. It was definitely a different layout than the other minis.

That is interesting...our steward acted like she had never heard of such it being attempted. Maybe she was trying to avoid the extra work?

That is interesting...our steward acted like she had never heard of such it being attempted. Maybe she was trying to avoid the extra work?

Well they are advertised as non-convertible twins. The steward we had on that cruise was one of the best we've had on Princess, and I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't offer to create a queen for his passengers.

This looks like a handicapped cabin bath. Also looks like the cabin is set up like handicapped with the closets that are in those cabins. However

it has the Mini sofa set up but smaller. Looks like Princess was going to have this as a handicapped but too small inside for full access.

Anyone know for sure? And what ship is this on, and do Princess ships all have same one.

This looks like a handicapped cabin bath. Also looks like the cabin is set up like handicapped with the closets that are in those cabins. However

it has the Mini sofa set up but smaller. Looks like Princess was going to have this as a handicapped but too small inside for full access.

Anyone know for sure? And what ship is this on, and do Princess ships all have same one.

I can't remember where I read it, but that is basically what was said. They were designed and built to be handicapped accessible and then did not pass inspection. I also, saw a rendering with two chairs instead of the small sofa. I will bet this cabin would work perfectly for most requiring an accessible cabin it just does not meet the ADA requirements.

This looks like a handicapped cabin bath. Also looks like the cabin is set up like handicapped with the closets that are in those cabins. However

it has the Mini sofa set up but smaller. Looks like Princess was going to have this as a handicapped but too small inside for full access.

Anyone know for sure? And what ship is this on, and do Princess ships all have same one.

I was too lazy to check which ships had this set-up last night. Just checked the Princess website...

Caribbean D732-733

Diamond D736-737

Golden D732-733

Grand D732-733

Sapphire D736-737

Star D732-733

And yes (as I noted in the original post) it was intended as a handicap cabin, but the "swing around" to get to the entry door is probably to restrictive for a large scooter (seems to be what most use). A wheelchair pushed by someone...no problem. But those scooters take up a lot of room. Their loss is our gain.

I saw this cabin on the Golden I believe and it did not have a couch, just chairs. Not sure if that is still true or not.

This is the first time I have seen it in a queen mode. When I saw it, it was in twin beds. It seems to flow better that way.

I saw this cabin on the Golden I believe and it did not have a couch, just chairs. Not sure if that is still true or not.

 

This is the first time I have seen it in a queen mode. When I saw it, it was in twin beds. It seems to flow better that way.

Yes, but DH refuses to sleep alone:p

Yes, but DH refuses to sleep alone:p

For awhile, it was marked "twins only" in brochures. I remember someone here posted that it could be made into queen and I could never imagine it. So your pictures helped that.

We had a suite right across the hall so we were able to see the cabin.

Thanks for clarification on this. I also seem to remember a post about this a long time ago regarding possible handicapped.

Nice cabin but especially nice balcony. Thanks for posting the photos.

Clear enough to see .

Thanks for the info. I posted a similar thread for the Caribbean Princess:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1921575

This is pretty crazy. I stayed in one of these rooms back in 2010 before they started the "remodel". I'm just so uncertain how I feel about this room now considering there's no bath tub, which is a nice touch to a mini suite. And the potential for NO SOFA? Yikes! The sofa is a nice and comfortable touch as well. Not sure if I'll book these rooms anymore...

Thank you for sharing the pictures! Is that you who covered face? LOL

Now it is a queen

The space to walk by the bed

Not huge, but OK

A different view of the queen

The bath room from the door - notice the size of the door:eek:

The shower

Back in a sec

That is the hubby.;)

I took the out of focus pictures.

This is pretty crazy. I stayed in one of these rooms back in 2010 before they started the "remodel". I'm just so uncertain how I feel about this room now considering there's no bath tub, which is a nice touch to a mini suite. And the potential for NO SOFA? Yikes! The sofa is a nice and comfortable touch as well. Not sure if I'll book these rooms anymore...

There is a "love seat" rather than a full sofa. It was big enough. And did you see that SHOWER? It made up for no tub. I love, love, love bath tubs. But the shower was fantastic.

Wow, I am so happy you posted these pics. I am in the same cabin on the Sapphire in January. I hope we get the small sofa, too.

I was in D737 on the Sapphire and the layout of the bathroom is mirror layout of the Star photos. So where you see the vanity is where the shower is. If you leave the wide bathroom door open you can shower looking out over the ocean. I've chosen this cabin on 3 cruises and would book it again in a heartbeat. The queen configuration works well and the desk is great.

Is this still classified for handicap or can anyone now book these cabins?

Is this still classified for handicap or can anyone now book these cabins?

Anyone can book. These are GREAT cabins (as long as you don't mind not having a tub). The balcony and ginormous shower makes up for the lack of a tub IMHO.

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I was too lazy to check which ships had this set-up last night. Just checked the Princess website...

Caribbean D732-733

Diamond D736-737

Golden D732-733

Grand D732-733

Sapphire D736-737

Star D732-733

 

And yes (as I noted in the original post) it was intended as a handicap cabin, but the "swing around" to get to the entry door is probably to restrictive for a large scooter (seems to be what most use). A wheelchair pushed by someone...no problem. But those scooters take up a lot of room. Their loss is our gain.

Also a gain for me, possibly on my Tester Cruise Melbourne-Sydney, Australia. Am going to compare the prices of a Balcony Cabin modified for Disabled Access, and the cabins on the Golden Princess! With a 50 year history of travelsickness, I was concerned about being on Aloha Deck, this may solve the problem!

Thank you for your generosity in sharing, I have new information, and 4 possibles for When I Win Lotto Cruising!:D

Crochetcruise:cool: