Hump angle cabins - 1A, CC or AQ?

[cpgrneyes]

I think I've read for an hour all the comments on the perks (or lack thereof) of CC over 1A cabins, and how virtually everybody loves Aqua.

 

Since I'm sold on the larger verandas that the angled hump areas provide, I will have to give up some quiet time due to pool noise, I believe, if I book an AQ hump.

 

So it comes down to value. For our 11 night eastern Med cruise, Aqua class is $680 more than a 1A and $400 more than C2. I think Blu would be a big plus for us, but I'm not sure if it's worth quite that much. I do think we'd opt for CC at a minimum for several reasons, so I'm really looking at the perceived value we'd be getting for the extra $400 cost of AQ.

 

Like most things, value is different for everyone, but I'd like to get your thoughts. I'm thinking of downgrading our hotel in Barcelona this year to save that $400! I have to fight the thought, "geez, we're spending so much anyway, what's another $200 here, $200 there?"

[DHADEN]

I hope this doesn't sound harsh, Greeneyes, but sometimes you just have to MAKE A DECISION. And then go with it.

 

You say "everyone loves aqua" - well everyone loves the Owners Suite or the Penthouse Suite, too. ;)

 

You can pay to eat at Blu and it will be a lot less than $400.

For the difference of $280 you get CC, but you don't have any of those with the larger balconies. Is that right?

 

Get the most you can afford, but not more.

 

Hope This Helps.

[cpgrneyes]

LOL, didn't take your comment as harsh at all, my indecision is making ME nuts. FYI, all ee of the cabins I'm considering are large angle hump balconies.

 

I don't think Blu is an option to pay extra for, and is only available to Aqua class or suite passengers.

 

I'm fortunate enough to be in the position that I can afford these three options, I'm just trying to determine which has the best value for what we pay for.

[jagoffee]

Assuming that you mean $400 cabin total and not per person, IMO the AQ would be worth the extra cost assuming you could get a good cabin location. (not under a high noise area).

 

$200 a person extra over CC would be close to my acceptable level assuming we were traveling alone or with others also staying in the same category.

[cpgrneyes]

Yes, the $400 is total, not Per person. We can get a large angle cabin facing forward on the hump.

[KY Deb]

We had a 1A cabin facing forward on the hump for our Solstice 11 day cruise last May in the Med. It was a great location and we loved the extra room on the balcony. I'd grab that cabin in a heartbeat and use the $$ you would have spent on Aqua or CC and try the specialty restaurants a few nights. :)

[eandj]

I would go with the 1A and use the $680 for....specialty restuarant dinners, private tours or hotel stays. No question in my mind. We did the Med cruise on Summit and were perfectly happy with the verandah room we had and the 2 nights in speciality dining. We enjoyed our private tours more than any meal on the ship.;)

You will LOVE Barcelona. (Look at Hotel Jazz for a nice price and great stay) Plan at least two days pre cruise. Stay near Las Ramblas and the Cat. Square where you'll find all kinds of tours and transportation. Oh and be sure to hit the basement grocery store in the Department store on the Square. AMAZING!!! Sorry ...off topic.;)

[dmk]

I have stayed in the cabin that has the largest balcony on the hump twice. Once was CC and the other was 1A. I would definitely select the 1A.

I have stayed in quite a few CC's over the years. I usually book them for their location and balcony sizes. The amenities at first were exciting for a CC. Now, I can easily do without them to have a large balcony.

As far as AC, I'd rather book speciality restos and spa times seperately. The other amenities...water, lotions etc don't really interest me.

One woman's thought:)

[MDCruiserz]

We're just recently off of Solstice. We were in a Sky Suite & so were able to try out Blu one evening. The meal and ambience were both wonderful, much better than the MDR. We also booked and enjoyed the Persian Gardens during our cruise, which would have been included with an AQ cabin. If you're planning on using the Persian Gardens, that cost alone will offset the extra cost of the AQ cabin by at least half, I would think. The cost for two on a 7-day cruise was $189.

 

On an eleven-day cruise, the extra $400 would be more than worth it for me just for those two benefits. Just my thoughts..

 

Enjoy your cruise & good luck selecting yoiur cabin!

[elena7seas]

I think I've read for an hour all the comments on the perks (or lack thereof) of CC over 1A cabins, and how virtually everybody loves Aqua.

 

Since I'm sold on the larger verandas that the angled hump areas provide, I will have to give up some quiet time due to pool noise, I believe, if I book an AQ hump.

 

So it comes down to value. For our 11 night eastern Med cruise, Aqua class is $680 more than a 1A and $400 more than C2. I think Blu would be a big plus for us, but I'm not sure if it's worth quite that much. I do think we'd opt for CC at a minimum for several reasons, so I'm really looking at the perceived value we'd be getting for the extra $400 cost of AQ.

 

Like most things, value is different for everyone, but I'd like to get your thoughts. I'm thinking of downgrading our hotel in Barcelona this year to save that $400! I have to fight the thought, "geez, we're spending so much anyway, what's another $200 here, $200 there?"

 

We have stayed in both AQ 1605 and AQ 1552. Friends were in AQ 1603. None of us heard any noise from above, or from next door, or from the elevators (which are closed off from the staterooms by automatic sliding doors).

 

We booked our AQ rooms as early as possible to secure the large balconies, but in all cases, the price on AQ dropped before sailing. If you book yourself, you can just call into Celebrity and claim the price difference. If you have a TA book for you, keep an eye on pricing and call your TA if you notice a price drop, and they can claim it for you. Our last AQ cruise was May/June 2009, and I have noticed that pricing is quite high for AQ this year. There is no way to know whether prices will drop before sailing or not.

 

We have one of the large CC hump balconies for our Baltic cruise in July 2011 (and one OV). We would have preferred AQ, but can't because there are 5 of us sailing, and you can have a maximum or two in each AQ room, so the math doesn't work.

 

We love all of the amenities of CC and AQ. DH loves the Persian Gardens, I love the pillow menu and the expanded room service menu, but the main reason we would book AQ is for Blu. We love the size of the restaurant, the unhurried service, and the food is great. Breakfast in Blu is also very good.

 

We know we will be happy with CC as well, and for the difference in price, we will make reservations in the specialty restaurants.

[ISABELLA]

Here are my two cents on the subject.

When you are in Mediteranian, you don' have much time to spend on the ship or your cabin.

We had one of those angled balconies in " partially obstructed category" and we loved it.

We were the next to 1A, had very large balcony, the same size room. The partial obstruction was a life boat to our left on deck 5. And we paid $1000.00 less than 1A.

By the way, BLu is only for Aqua class guests.

[jagoffee]

Here are my two cents on the subject.

BLu is only for Aqua class guests.

 

And Suite passengers for a small fee if available.

[kitkat9438]

I would go with the Aqua Class cabin. We were in CC last December and loved it. Now we are going to try Aqua this December and are really looking forward to it. We have 1606 on the hump. As others have mentioned Blu and the spa amenities, plus relaxation room and persian gardens are great perks, the shower is much better (it's a spa like shower), linens and robes are better, you get FREE bottled water and tea and most importantly extra cruise credits. If you are sailing 11 nights I believe you get 2 cruise credits to go toward the Captains Club instead of 1 (that's if you need it). The free bottled water could make up the price difference for you if you drink a lot of bottled water. Whatever you decide I'm sure you will have a great cruise!

[ISABELLA]

"The free bottled water could make up the price difference for you if you drink a lot of bottled water."

 

I would not book it for the water - $1000 will buy you a lot of water.

Other extras and dining in Blu will be the major decision breaker.

[alanandneil]

Aqua Class, in our opinion, is well worth it for Blu alone; add in Persian Gardens and the little perks in cabin and there you go. We just booked Equinox cabin 1605 for next year; it has the big veranda (Solstice class ships). Enjoy whatever decision you make.

[kitkat9438]

"The free bottled water could make up the price difference for you if you drink a lot of bottled water."

 

I would not book it for the water - $1000 will buy you a lot of water.

Other extras and dining in Blu will be the major decision breaker.

 

I was not suggesting booking AQ for the water. OP is looking at a cost difference of $680 for 11 day cruising. I am just saying that if you add up ALL of the perks that come with AQ, including Blu, persian gardens, bottled water, etc., for us it will be worth it. The water package is $13.50 per day so that would come out to $189.00 (for 2) if you bought it separately or a lot more than that individually without a package. I know some people could care less about bottled water and I am not trying to open up another can of worms, merely stating my opinion.

[jagoffee]

Yes, and the OP already stated that they were at least staying in CC, so the difference is only $400 total. Personally we really liked the water benefit, but would never pay $289 for the water package. We would just purchase the water on shore if we were not in AQ.

[curtdesilets]

"The free bottled water could make up the price difference for you if you drink a lot of bottled water."

 

I would not book it for the water - $1000 will buy you a lot of water.

Other extras and dining in Blu will be the major decision breaker.

 

The Tap water on all Celebrity ships goes through a 3 stage process including reverse osmosis. There is never a need to pay extra for bottled water. :)

[Alsmez]

Here are my two cents on the subject.

When you are in Mediteranian, you don' have much time to spend on the ship or your cabin.

We had one of those angled balconies in " partially obstructed category" and we loved it.

We were the next to 1A, had very large balcony, the same size room. The partial obstruction was a life boat to our left on deck 5. And we paid $1000.00 less than 1A.

By the way, BLu is only for Aqua class guests.

 

Interesting - I just booked 6157 (2C, a partially obstructed balcony on the back side of the hump) on Equinox. It was $500 total less than C3 and close to $1000 less than AQ. I was bummed to have lost the "steal" I thought I got on concierge class yesterday (C3 was the same price as 2C then) but it sounds like perhaps the extra balcony space is better than concierge perks!

[Eliz]

We've sailed Solstice twice (just returned from the 4/11 sailing), in #9215 one of the largest 1A angled balconies. We booked AQ 1605 for November as we want to try out Blu. Love the large balconies!

 

In my opinion it comes down to whether Blu is what you want to experience. After a long day in port it might be the perfect place for a relaxing meal...much more intimate than the MDR.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

Elizabeth

[Cruiser-66]

Elizabeth, When you were on the Solstice in 9215, what kind of deck furniture did you have. Was there a large table or just a small one. Did you have a chair with a foot rest?

[Eliz]

Knutsoni, we had two deck chairs...very comfortable. You can adjust the back into several positions. We did not have a foot rest. When we were on the first cruise, I dragged the coffee table onto the balcony, put a pillow on it and propped my feet up on it. On our last cruise the weather was not too great, so I never sat out there for a long stretch. The table is not too big, but is large enough for two to dine at.

 

Elizabeth

[alanandneil]

You will love Blu; like a private club dining room on the ship. We booked 1605 for next year also.