Royal Princess - Soot on Balcony

[nycruise]

We had an aft cabin (our first & last) booked for the 5 day maiden voyage next week, changed it to a regular balcony earlier this week, as a result of this and the other thread. Might not have been a problem but didn't want to have to worry about it. The pictures convinced me I needed to change. Thanks for the heads up.

[need2cruisesoon]

NYCruise:

 

This was posted by IECALCruiser:

We have D729 booked for the Maiden TA. The balconies on Baja and Dolphin should be very similar the the Grand class Caribe deck balconies, 9'x9' and 5' covered/4' uncovered.

 

I think if you book a Dolphin aft cabin you should be protected from any soot, its the decks above that are uncovered that seem to have these issues. I also have the same aft balcony D729 booked for our Baltic cruise next July and have thought about changing but decided to stay with this cabin.

 

[nycruise]

It's my understanding that Dolphin Deck is partially covered.

[IECalCruiser]

NYCruise:

 

This was posted by IECALCruiser:

We have D729 booked for the Maiden TA. The balconies on Baja and Dolphin should be very similar the the Grand class Caribe deck balconies, 9'x9' and 5' covered/4' uncovered.

 

I think if you book a Dolphin aft cabin you should be protected from any soot, its the decks above that are uncovered that seem to have these issues. I also have the same aft balcony D729 booked for our Baltic cruise next July and have thought about changing but decided to stay with this cabin.

 

We had to cancel the Maiden TA, but rebooked on the Spring TA and have D730. We haven't thought even a second about changing cabins.

[Alaskanb]

We had to cancel the Maiden TA, but rebooked on the Spring TA and have D730. We haven't thought even a second about changing cabins.

We have booked D731 for Eastern caribbean in 2015 -- looking forward to hearing of your experiences in D730.

[DShock]

Our friends are on the Royal now heading back to FLL. I emailed him yesterday and asked about the soot. They are in an corner aft S2 suite. He said he hasn't experienced any soot. His balcony is mostly covered (on Baja deck) so the fact that it is mostly covered could be part of the reason they haven't experienced soot on the balcony. Or maybe Princess has corrected the issue. He will post photos when he gets home.

[SeaCBear]

We have twice sailed in aft cabins, but not on Princess. Our first aft cabin was on RCI's Navigator of the Seas, and we had no soot issues. Our second, much longer (15 nights) trans-Atlantic cruise was on the Mariner of the Seas - a sister ship to the Navigator. We did often have soot on our balcony (which was huge) on that cruise - sometimes quite a lot, but not always. On some days there was no soot to be seen.

 

I really do think that the wind direction and wind speed are major factors which may determine whether soot is an issue in an aft cabin. I'm not sure it's something that Princess can "fix" on the Royal (or the Regal).

Edited October 23, 2013 by SeaCBear

[boca7]

We had noticed some comments/queries re soot on aft balconies so posted the photos in order that people could see for themselves. We do not wish to put anybody off from booking. We stayed in B735 which is classified as an owner's suite on the starboard aft corner as per David's photos but this would presumably apply to aft balconies whether deluxe or suite. This was the July Venice to Barcelona cruise.

 

We noticed soot deposits, although comparatively minor, right from our first day at sea on leaving Venice. However, the deposits were excessive after sailing through the Straights of Messina.

 

We reported the soot at the Purser's Desk who sent someone to inspect. The answer seemed to be it was the room steward's problem and that he had to get on and clean it (all the balconies under his control). We thought this was unreasonable for him and requested that he was given some assistance but the answer was no. We were really sorry for him; he was very apologetic which of course was not his fault and he worked his socks off in an effort to clean the balconies.

 

We used extra poolside towels to cover the seats; were careful with light coloured clothing; and cleaned our shoes on additional towels placed at the balcony entrance.

 

We loved the ship; in particular the entertainment in the Piazza; breakfast in Sabatini's (the Head Waiter and staff were great); balcony dinner; Captain's lunch; Bellini's bar; Alfredo's; Horizon Court. We enjoyed the cruise and in fact have booked the equivalent suite on the Regal for next year so really hope they have got this sorted by then.

 

We wrote to the Customer Services Manager on 7th August in relation to the soot and have not had the courtesy of an acknowledgement or reply.

Ask to speak to the customer service MANAGER on board, no one else.

[IECalCruiser]

Learned today from Karen, who took the UST...But what was interesting is the soot problem. Apparently, the wind tunnel and other design tests demonstrated that there would be no soot problem but that was without MUTS being installed. They think the screen is causing whorls that are redirecting the soot and debris. This is being looked into and will be corrected

Uh Oh!

 

This was part of a post from Pam in CA on the current Live thread.

Edited October 24, 2013 by IECalCruiser

[Beachdude]

Uh Oh!

 

This was part of a post from Pam in CA on the current Live thread.

 

Yep, no screen test leads to bad theater.

 

Burt

[JimmyVWine]

Yep, no screen test leads to bad theater.

 

Burt

:)

 

But seriously, folks. How does a cruise line do a wind tunnel test without including that big, flat, retangular, drag-inducing structure on top of the ship? Heck. How did/do they know that the darn thing wouldn't fall off in a gale unless they tested it?

[Ethel5]

:)

 

But seriously, folks. How does a cruise line do a wind tunnel test without including that big, flat, retangular, drag-inducing structure on top of the ship? Heck. How did/do they know that the darn thing wouldn't fall off in a gale unless they tested it?

 

Maybe they didn't!

[JimmyVWine]

Maybe they didn't!

When the Patter lists the 8:00 MUTS showing as: Gone With The Wind, I'm heading below deck!!

[dchip]

When the Patter lists the 8:00 MUTS showing as: Gone With The Wind, I'm heading below deck!!

 

:D :D :D

 

What the heck ever happened to quality control???? How van you test something with the sum of all the parts??

 

Cheers, Denise

[chamima]

:D :D :D

 

What the heck ever happened to quality control???? How van you test something with the sum of all the parts??

 

Cheers, Denise

 

The same way you build a ship without a central staircase after you've done that once already and it didn't work! :eek:

[JimmyVWine]

The same way you build a ship without a central staircase after you've done that once already and it didn't work! :eek:

Touché

[Ethel5]

The same way you build a ship without a central staircase after you've done that once already and it didn't work! :eek:

 

Princess are you listening?

[FishOn55]

The big problem seemed to be on Caribe deck aft facing cabin. These are totally uncovered so everything drifts down. Someone on Dolphin deck had no problems as it was totally covered.

 

Does anyone have any feedback about a balcony soot problem on the PH suite balconies on Riveria deck 14?

 

Can I assume since they are on the side of the ship rather than the aft and the balconies are fully covered (I think), that soot will not be a problem?

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

I sail in 2 weeks and have an aft cabin on Rivera deck. It's completely uncovered. I'll report back.

 

It's a shame if this problem is that severe. These aft cabins are the only ones on the entire ship that I am willing to take on the Royal. I am a huge balcony user and could never be happy with those tiny ones on the sides!! Might be my only time on the Royal (or Regal).

[Iamcruzin]

When the Patter lists the 8:00 MUTS showing as: Gone With The Wind, I'm heading below deck!!

Going by Pia's movie list reports they could be showing that one sooner than you think.

[IECalCruiser]

Does anyone have any feedback about a balcony soot problem on the PH suite balconies on Riveria deck 14?

 

Can I assume since they are on the side of the ship rather than the aft and the balconies are fully covered (I think), that soot will not be a problem?

This was a post today on Pia's Live thread.

We are in a PH on the Riviera deck and the only good thing to say about the balcony is there is no soot.

[Woobstr112G]

Our friends are on the Royal now heading back to FLL. I emailed him yesterday and asked about the soot. They are in an corner aft S2 suite. He said he hasn't experienced any soot. His balcony is mostly covered (on Baja deck) so the fact that it is mostly covered could be part of the reason they haven't experienced soot on the balcony. Or maybe Princess has corrected the issue. He will post photos when he gets home.

 

We are currently in D726. Our entire balcony was covered in soot. DW has some issues with breathing that made any prolonged enjoyment of our balcony, which was the best we've ever had, unusable. We were compensated for the loss of balcony usage.

 

Bob

[need2cruisesoon]

Now I am really worried. I thought the Dolphin deck was impervious to soot because they were half way covered.

We are booked in D729 for next years Baltic cruise. Wow what a disappointment. Time to look at other cabins but I really like the aft.:confused:

 

[chamima]

We have an aft booked, too.

We REALLY love the afts!

I'm going to wait until final payment before I switch cabins in hopes that Princess figures out a solution.

[lovevacadays]

We are currently in D726. Our entire balcony was covered in soot. DW has some issues with breathing that made any prolonged enjoyment of our balcony, which was the best we've ever had, unusable. We were compensated for the loss of balcony usage.

 

Bob

 

So sorry to hear of the soot problem but nice to hear that Princess is aware and compensating you.