dawn princess aft vibrations

[lancet]

Hi all.

 

We have booked an AB mini suite on the Dawn stern. We were on the Sea Princess trip to Alaska back in Sept. We were not in a mini suite, but spent some time lounging at the stern. We noticed an irritating vibration that was constant.

 

I know previous threads have discussed aft vibrations, especially on leaving or entering ports. This I wouldn't mind, but not a constant vibration. Has anyone have knowledge about an AB aft cabin on the Dawn, and about any vibration problem?

 

Thanks Lancet

[Aus Traveller]

I suggest you post this question on the P & O Australia section of this forum because it covers all cruises out of Australia. As you probably know, the Dawn Princess has been based in Australia for a couple of years so there are plenty of people on the P & O Aust section who have cruised on her recently.

[lancet]

Thanks Aus. Will give it a try

lancet

[Colo Cruiser]

Regardless you are over the propellers and there will be vibration.

[Colo Cruiser]

But they are great locations. :D

[wineforhealth]

I suggest you post this question on the P & O Australia section of this forum because it covers all cruises out of Australia. As you probably know, the Dawn Princess has been based in Australia for a couple of years so there are plenty of people on the P & O Aust section who have cruised on her recently.

 

I have been in the Dawn aft cabins many times. It does seem that the vibrations are more on this ship than some of the others. You get the vibrations the most when going against the current up the west coast from Cabo to Seattle . If this a concern I wouldn't book the aft rooms.

 

Hope this helps

[Pam in CA]

You get the vibrations the most when going against the current up the west coast from Cabo to Seattle . If this a concern I wouldn't book the aft rooms.

This is because the ship is probably going at full speed against the fast-moving California Current, which flows north > south along the coast of California and Baja California from the Gulf of Alaska. It's also why, if Cabo is the last port before disembarkation in LA, the ship leaves early in the afternoon rather than at 5pm, to account for any additional current speed or wind against the ship. Kind of like when flying from west to east with the Jet Stream the plane goes faster but flying from east to west, it's against the Jet Stream and the flight takes longer, even when going the same speed.

 

Any time the engines, and propellers, are going full speed against a current, there will be more vibration. More on some ships, particularly older ships. The vibration you hear/feel when entering or leaving port is usually the thrusters although it can be propeller vibration as well. When in dry dock, the thrusters are checked, cleaned and repaired (if needed.)

[1 HappyCruiser]

We noticed the same vibrations on most of their ships & don't book aft cabins for that reason. We normally book cabins near the aft elevators and don't have any problems but the constant jiggling near the rear of the ship can be annoying.

[wineforhealth]

This is because the ship is probably going at full speed against the fast-moving California Current, which flows north > south along the coast of California and Baja California from the Gulf of Alaska. It's also why, if Cabo is the last port before disembarkation in LA, the ship leaves early in the afternoon rather than at 5pm, to account for any additional current speed or wind against the ship. Kind of like when flying from west to east with the Jet Stream the plane goes faster but flying from east to west, it's against the Jet Stream and the flight takes longer, even when going the same speed.

 

Any time the engines, and propellers, are going full speed against a current, there will be more vibration. More on some ships, particularly older ships. The vibration you hear/feel when entering or leaving port is usually the thrusters although it can be propeller vibration as well. When in dry dock, the thrusters are checked, cleaned and repaired (if needed.)

 

 

Pam thanks for adding more to my response. When I was on the Golden in real strong rough current And didn't feel half the grinding I did when I was on the Dawn. It maybe in the design of the ships.

[compozer]

We just came off two weeks on the Grand in an aft suite and the vibration was there all the time. I never got use to it. drove me nuts at bed time

[lancet]

Thank you everyone for your replies. Yes they were of great help. The vibrations I felt sitting on the aft decks on the Sea Princess were annoying to me. I am going to see if there are any AC mini suites available--They are midship. Thanks so much for taking the time to respond.

 

Lancet

[eclipse2]

Very topical for us.

 

We spoke to the TA today about a mini-suite on the Diamond Princess for a cruise in 2011. The mini-suites on the DP are on level 9 but we have been told that the balcony rooms above look over the balcony of the mini-suite. The option is to go for a aft mini suite on level 8, which are supposed to be covered by the balcony above, but the vibration issue is not one that we have considered.

 

Has anyone had a mini-suite on the DP and if so, any comments about the the issues raised above?

 

Eclipse2

[diecastaussie]

Very topical for us.

 

We spoke to the TA today about a mini-suite on the Diamond Princess for a cruise in 2011. The mini-suites on the DP are on level 9 but we have been told that the balcony rooms above look over the balcony of the mini-suite. The option is to go for a aft mini suite on level 8, which are supposed to be covered by the balcony above, but the vibration issue is not one that we have considered.

 

Has anyone had a mini-suite on the DP and if so, any comments about the the issues raised above?

 

Eclipse2

 

 

We have been on Diamond twice before and going again in May next year. We love the ship but we have noticed an unusual sideways vibration at the rear of the the ship. This was especially noticable on the upper decks. We were told that this "jerky" sideways movement is caused by the stabilisers as they move through the water and it becomes more prominent as the sea gets "choppier" although I am not sure if this is the same sort of vibration that was being referred to in the earlier post relating to Dawn Princess.

 

Regarding the Mini Suits on Dolphin deck, yes the balconies are totally exposed. There is no shelter from the sun or rain and no privacy from the inquisitive eyes of people on balconies on the decks above you:eek:.

 

Garry:D:D

[eclipse2]

Garry

 

Thanks for the info. Looks like it will be a midship balcony for us. I see that you have done the Singapore to Sydney cruise. It is the one that we are booking. Did you enjoy the cruise and the ports? Did the seas / weather at that time of the year cause any problems?

 

Eclipse2

[1 HappyCruiser]

We have been on Diamond twice before and going again in May next year. We love the ship but we have noticed an unusual sideways vibration at the rear of the the ship. This was especially noticable on the upper decks. We were told that this "jerky" sideways movement is caused by the stabilisers as they move through the water and it becomes more prominent as the sea gets "choppier" although I am not sure if this is the same sort of vibration that was being referred to in the earlier post relating to Dawn Princess.

 

 

 

Garry:D:D

 

I'm not to sure about the stabilizers being the problem because I've experiences the same motion on all of the ships sitting in the aft section of Cafe Carib even with calm seas. It might get worse when using the stabilizers but even in calm seas it's enough to drive you out of the cabin after hours of being shaken.

[oratheeexplorer]

Several nights on the Emerald, we felt a lot of vibration while sitting in Club Fusion.....

[Toto2Kansas]

At one time the Sea Princess had a very very bad vibration problem aft, it wasn't the norm and was due to a mechanical problem it had for many months. We sailed during those months and it was terrible, knocked everything off the tables and shelves of our AB mini suite when the ship was coming into port or attempting to get to a position for anchoring.

 

Our last cruise on the Dawn was 14 days from SF to Mexico RT, we had a full suite aft and didn't have any vibration problem whatsoever. In fact, it was probably the calmest aft suite we have had to date. So, unless weather is playing a factor in this, or there is a problem with the Dawn, I would not expect any severe (or even not severe) vibration problems in an aft stateroom. ;)

[Pam in CA]

Very topical for us.

 

We spoke to the TA today about a mini-suite on the Diamond Princess for a cruise in 2011. The mini-suites on the DP are on level 9 but we have been told that the balcony rooms above look over the balcony of the mini-suite. The option is to go for a aft mini suite on level 8, which are supposed to be covered by the balcony above, but the vibration issue is not one that we have considered.

 

Has anyone had a mini-suite on the DP and if so, any comments about the the issues raised above?

Mini-suites on Dolphin deck are uncovered and exposed to all cabins above. They also get the most sun. The "AD" mini-suites on Emerald deck are fully-covered, private, and for the most part, very quiet. If you book an AD, get an odd-numbered cabin as there will be less noise from the lounge below. I love the ADs and think they are among the best cabins on the ship but everyone has different expectations and preferences. Regardless, when on a ship, it's a mechanical entity on a moving/changing sea and there will be noise from engines, thrusters, stabilizers, and the ship itself.

[diecastaussie]

Garry

 

Thanks for the info. Looks like it will be a midship balcony for us. I see that you have done the Singapore to Sydney cruise. It is the one that we are booking. Did you enjoy the cruise and the ports? Did the seas / weather at that time of the year cause any problems?

 

Eclipse2

 

The cruise was great, we did it over the Christmas/New Year period and enjoyed every minute. We had a BA category balcony on Caribe deck; this is a great compromise because it has a large balcony (same size as a mini suite) and the balcony is half covered giving at least some shelter and privacy.

 

The seas were calm, but we did get a fair amount of rain in the Asian sector of the cruise.

 

Garry:D:D

[eclipse2]

Hi Garry

 

Thanks again for the info. We have asked for the balcony room prices, but still thinking that we would like to try the aft mini-suite (how bad can it be?).

 

By the way, how are things in Melbourne? We are just getting to the Summer heat pattern over here and not looking forward to the usual Perth heat wave in the coming months.

 

Elcipse2