Cruising with adult children in an inside cabin across the hall

[SandG]

We haven't cruised as a family in a while, but we are celebrating our 30th anniversary on a cruise this spring. I've booked a concierge level cabin, and our adult children (early/mid-20's graduate students) are staying in an inside cabin across the hall. It is a separate reservation number but our reservations are linked together. I have several questions in my mind on how things will work out when we're on board.

 

1) Will we be able to request an extra key card so they can use our balcony when they want to?

 

2) DH and I have the 123go package (all three perks); they were ineligible since they are in an inside cabin. Can we use our card to pay for drinks for them using our OBC (which we also have, but they don't).

 

3) I believe we get priority tendering with concierge, would they be able to leave with us?

 

3a) We are also hoping for a priority embarkation for our CC status and they being allow to board with us, but I understand this is the discretion of the people at the port.

 

Regarding #2, I'm think it's very possible that they will be in a minority for having no beverage package with all of the 123 promotions that are going on lately. So I feel sorry for them, especially since they are poor grad students so I would like to help out by buying them some drinks in the evening. (Before anyone suggests it, I do not want to pay $1388 to buy them beverage packages. )

 

Looking for feedback/tips from anyone who's had a similar experience.

[CathyCruises]

1. Yes, just request an extra key(s) at a Guest Relations

 

2. Yes, you can buy them drinks on your Seapass, but you obviously know you can't get drinks for them with your package ;)

 

3. Not sure but probably, just ask for four tickets

 

3A. Yes if you arrive at the port together, just go to the CC line together

[debkaysmith]

Just about the same answers here.

1. Yes you can get them a key to your balcony cabin - we've done this.

2. You can treat them to beverages, but they're very particular about using your beverage package. We've tried this too.

3. Yes, your entire group can embark and disembark together for boarding and excursions - we've done this too.

 

Enjoy!!

[fleckle]

Just about the same answers here.

1. Yes you can get them a key to your balcony cabin - we've done this.

Same answers here, but I would suggest that you get keys to their cabin as well so that all of you have keys to both cabins.

 

You may never need to use the extra keys to their cabin, but it is handy to have them just in case.

For example, they may head out to breakfast early and you plan to sleep in and join them later. If they realize they forgot something, instead of needing to run all the way back to the cabin, they can give you a call and ask you to bring it.

 

When we were in concierge and our kids were not, we were always leaving our concierge goodies in their cabin for them, figuring it was better for them to be the ones consuming those extra calories. :D

 

[Atreidai]

I am not an expert but I should think that leaving your Concierge treats over in their cabin would be good. If they are wine drinkers it might be easy to purchase a bottle of wine (maybe 2) for dinner and just leave them to take the leftover wine with them to drink in their cabin?

 

Cheers!

 

Derek

[ailetoile]

I am not an expert but I should think that leaving your Concierge treats over in their cabin would be good. If they are wine drinkers it might be easy to purchase a bottle of wine (maybe 2) for dinner and just leave them to take the leftover wine with them to drink in their cabin?

 

Cheers!

 

Derek

 

Just to chime in, you can bring two bottles of wine aboard at embarkation for each state room. Your children could bring some wine to drink aboard at that point free of charge, and they can enjoy it in the dining room if they walk in with it.

 

You could also purchase a bottle of wine or other spirits through the Celebrity Gifts program for them prior to boarding. The advantage of doing this would be that you would NOT pay an 18% gratuity on the alcohol and it would be available to take into the MDR or whatever specialty dining without being subject to a corkage fee.

 

Just a few "outside the box" options for you, OP. And happy anniversary! :)

[gentle@spici]

My wife and I were on the Reflection last month. We were maybe a 30 second walk from our cabin to a couple of different bars by the pool area. I always like to have 6-8 beers in the fridge so I can sit on our balcony and drink 3 or 4 in the evening relaxing. So I would take both of our cards to the bar and bring back 2 beers every time to stock up. I asked them not to open them up. She would do the same with waters because she drinks about a gallon a day. So we always had a fridge full of beer and water all week long. One night I watched the Green Bay Dallas game from our balcony and drank around 6 beers while she was at the casino. Was very nice not to have to run up to the bar every 15 minutes. Also I gave my steward a few bucks to keep me equipped with ice for the cooler I packed. This I kept with me while we layed in the sun up top so I always had my own personal bucket of beer.

[3girlsmom]

One more thought...We too have always put our girls in an inside across the hall from us.

Next month on the Reflection it was only about $20 more pp for them to be in a balcony cabin when we figured in the free drink package, gratuities & OBC. Our kids are now 20 something too, so they no longer need to be right across the hall either. : ) That opened up more options on cabin locations. Have you checked the price of balconies? If they are still too high, they may go down & you could upgrade them later & get the perks. A few times our kids have bought drink packages with their own hard earned money, and they loved having them.

 

In all their years of cruising they have never complained about their cozy inside cabins, but they are excited to try a balcony. Hopefully we haven't raised their expectations for the future though....

[cruise kitty]

To the OP:

 

You could buy them some OBC as a little gift on each of their accounts, & since the cruise isn't until May, they have some time to save up some money ahead of time.

[SandG]

One more thought...We too have always put our girls in an inside across the hall from us.

Next month on the Reflection it was only about $20 more pp for them to be in a balcony cabin when we figured in the free drink package, gratuities & OBC. Our kids are now 20 something too, so they no longer need to be right across the hall either. : ) That opened up more options on cabin locations. Have you checked the price of balconies? If they are still too high, they may go down & you could upgrade them later & get the perks. A few times our kids have bought drink packages with their own hard earned money, and they loved having them.

 

In all their years of cruising they have never complained about their cozy inside cabins, but they are excited to try a balcony. Hopefully we haven't raised their expectations for the future though....

 

It's an interesting thought. When we booked, I noticed that their inside cabin price is $1000/per person less than we were paying, but I checked out prices again just now. They are not in the cheapest inside cabin since they're on a higher deck with us but the cheapest balcony (obstructed) is still $700/pp more. (Even an ocean view on deck 3 was $500/pp more for each.) It's a big difference, maybe because it's a European sailing? But gratuities and OBC work out to $150 for each perk each. So if they were planning to buy the beverage package, it might be a little cheaper in theory to just upgrade instead. Maybe they would consider that if they weren't still in grad school living on a research stipend (~$14K/yr) :) For the amount of alcohol we drink (mostly beer and wine) it'll still be cheaper to stay across the hall and more convenient too. Thanks for the idea anyway, it might have worked out in other circumstances.

[SandG]

Thank you all for all the helpful input. I enjoyed reading your experiences and ideas.

Edited February 19, 2015 by SandG

[dkjretired]

Thank you all for all the helpful input. I enjoyed reading your experiences and ideas.

 

Just so you are aware priority embarkation is only a separate line at check in, sometimes the regular lines are shorter.

[phoenix_dream]

Just a thought for future trips of this sort - I am guessing that a twenty something would make better use of a beverage package than a fifty something in most cases. Might have been a more economical idea to book the parents in the inside cabin and the adult children in the concierge room, and then just switch sleeping arrangements. I am not sure if the switch could be done now without losing perks, but a thought for the future if you planned to be buying them drinks anyway. This would be particularly true if the parents were Elite or higher and got the Elite social hour drinks. When DH and I book a room with our adult son, we always put our son as the second person rather than me because he certainly will drink more than I ever will. That is what made me think this idea could work.

[az_tchr]

Absolutely. Did an Alaska cruise last year. 3 grandsons aged 22, 21 and 17. Put them in the balcony with drink package - alos lots of juices and specialty coffee. We are Elite and the wine in the PM along with the bottles brought on board were plenty for us non coffee drinkers.

[DinaS]

To the OP:

 

You could buy them some OBC as a little gift on each of their accounts, & since the cruise isn't until May, they have some time to save up some money ahead of time.

 

That seems like the best idea yet! Instead of buying them occasional drinks, it will allow them to buy drinks when they want them.

 

Whatever you were planning on spending on drinks for them, give it to them in OBC.

 

You can still buy a bottle of wine for them at dinner when you are all together, but each of them having the freedom to buy their own drinks when they are out and about would be great!

[CathyCruises]

OP has already stated that they have OBC on their account to spend, wouldn't want to go buy more for the kids when they already have it. They COULD just link their cards for paying purposes, then any charges the kids accrued would come off the parents OBC.

[SandG]

Wow, excellent ideas all! You're right, that the 20-somethings will certainly out drink us old folks, so it might have been a good idea to put them where they could get the free drinks. I never thought about that. You're all so clever!!

 

On the other hand, it might be better that we have the unlimited drinks since I believe that we will have more self-control. :) The fact that they will have to pay for drinks (aside from treats from us) should keep the total consumption down somewhat, so we're not traveling with drunk young adults, nor dealing with any hangovers when going out on excursions together. (Of course I'm exaggerating a little bit here, trying to be a little bit funny ... and okay, I'll admit they're adults and I should butt out, but I'll always be a mother, and I can't help it. :p)

 

BTW, we are giving each of them $1000 towards the cost of the cruise and flights on top of whatever we choose to spend on them during it, so I don't feel the need to spend much more money out of pocket. (They do have some money saved up for this trip.) And that's correct that we have a bunch of OBC to use up, and I just wanted to "share the wealth" and use that to treat them.

 

I wish we were Elite, we're only just over halfway there. At least with us in the concierge cabin, we will get a lot of points from this sailing.