Princess newbie feeling frustrated

[Valley Girl of VA]

Not new to cruising but new to Princess. We are traveling on the Emerald for a SA cruise, west to east in 2018. I'm bringing a few friends with me.

 

I initially booked the mini but found out the mini on Dolphin was uncovered. Then I looked at the mini on Deck 8 but they are immediately over Club Fusion, potential of thumping music till who knows when as well as in the aft on the side. Those minis are also connecting rooms. I've always been told not to get connecting again for the noise factor. Why are the minis either uncovered, all connecting, over loud venues or, in my opinion only, in a poor location. For me this is frustrating as I wanted to larger stateroom.

 

Then I began looking at the balconies that a couple of our friends are in. They too are in a connecting so I thought I would potentially go next to them because we are not night tim partiers. The room next to them is a quad and the lower beds can be made into a queen but not until we get there - why?

 

I do not want to pay the price that the regular suites sell for but holy moly, all I want is a mini, with a covered balcony, not too forward or aft and not a connecting room. It seems to be asking too much.

 

Thanks for listening......Jane

[Colo Cruiser]

Take the mini on Emerald deck mini and take all these comments with a grain of salt. The ever so slight bass noise if any has never bothered us at all. I would take a connecting door cabin in those emerald mini's any day as well.

 

I think you are overthinking the whole thing. IMO.

Edited August 26, 2016 by Colo Cruiser

[Coolmama_1]

Take the mini on Emerald deck mini and take all these comments with a grain of salt. The ever so slight bass noise if any has never bothered us at all. I would take a connecting door cabin in those emerald mini's any day as well.

 

I think you are overthinking the whole thing. IMO.

 

I totally agree. We love the Emerald deck mini suites and have never had a noise issue. Go and enjoy.

[jasbo49]

It's only the back few cabins on the port side that have reported noise. The stage is on that side. No one has reported any noise that I'm aware of on the starboard side. And I've never heard of connecting cabins being an issue.

 

Jim

[skynight]

Not new to cruising but new to Princess. We are traveling on the Emerald for a SA cruise, west to east in 2018. I'm bringing a few friends with me.

 

I initially booked the mini but found out the mini on Dolphin was uncovered. Then I looked at the mini on Deck 8 but they are immediately over Club Fusion, potential of thumping music till who knows when as well as in the aft on the side. Those minis are also connecting rooms. I've always been told not to get connecting again for the noise factor. Why are the minis either uncovered, all connecting, over loud venues or, in my opinion only, in a poor location. For me this is frustrating as I wanted to larger stateroom.

Except for the 12 mini suites on deck 8, all mini suites on Grand Class ships are uncovered. Why? You would have to ask the ship's designers. It is just the way it is. For most passengers it isn't an issue. These cabins fill quickly and are in demand. It isn't like people are staring down at you. If SA means South America, then you will not be spending much time on the balcony. It's mostly too cool. Music in Club Fusion, when they have it, usually ends around midnight. Club Fusion isn't a late night venue. That venue is Skywalker's. The M1 minis on the Emerald will come with Club Class Dining. Take a look at the new Club Class benefits on the Princess web site.

 

Then I began looking at the balconies that a couple of our friends are in. They too are in a connecting so I thought I would potentially go next to them because we are not night tim partiers. The room next to them is a quad and the lower beds can be made into a queen but not until we get there - why?

You can see which cabins are connecting by going to the deck plans on the Princess web site and selecting the box connecting cabins. The connection is by the entrance door, not in the middle of the cabin. Quad cabins have two upper berths that are lowered from the ceiling. When not in use the berths are recessed and you can hardly notice they are there. With only two in a cabin you can request either the quenn configuration or the twin configuration. This can be done at booking, and you can also change it yourself on line in the cruise personilizer. Don't know where you got the idea that the berths are set up for 4 until you arrive on board. This isn't accurate.

 

I do not want to pay the price that the regular suites sell for but holy moly, all I want is a mini, with a covered balcony, not too forward or aft and not a connecting room. It seems to be asking too much.

It's asking too much if you want the company to change the structure of the ship, don't you agree with this.

 

Thanks for listening......Jane

See above

[cruisinAllie]

Looking at a deck plan now, the staterooms on deck 8 do not connect. The balconies do, but every single balcony on every single ship has this feature. Just don't unlock your balcony gate to keep separation. You'll be fine.

[Colo Cruiser]

Looking at a deck plan now, the staterooms on deck 8 do not connect. The balconies do, but every single balcony on every single ship has this feature. Just don't unlock your balcony gate to keep separation. You'll be fine.

 

 

Connecting doors were added to cabins on some ships in the past year. ;)

[Working 2 Cruise]

As much as you want it, you won't find a mid-ship mini-suite with a covered balcony on any Princess ships, especially the Grand class. Those are all aft. Just pick one on starboard, which will obviate any noise, on Emerald deck.

[flamomo]

If you can get a mini on Emerald deck on the starboard side of the ship, grab it!! That's a great location. The starboard side aft area is a low traffic area so it's quiet back there. The possible noise concern is only port side near the aft because it's close to the bandstand in the lounge beneath that area.

[OCruisers]

We're totally happy with mid-ship Mini-Suites on Dolphin Deck and what we always book.

Keep in mind that while uncovered they are very seldom in Full Sun. :)

[TinaLee]

If you have noisy neighbors, a connecting door is going to be the least of your worries. Don't let a connecting door deter you from the cabin you want. I wish you good luck with whoever your neighbors turn out to be - they can definitely turn a good cruise bad pretty quickly, especially in a balcony cabin!

[treesah]

We had a mini on Emerald deck port side. No noise, but then we never went to bed until after midnight. Would book it again.

[shredie]

I think you are overthinking the whole thing. IMO.

 

I agree. The ships are what they are. If you don't see a cabin you would like, perhaps you need a different ship. (If you end up near Club Fusion and the music is too loud, you can ask the CD to move the band. LOL.)

[Valley Girl of VA]

Thanks Everyone - I know I am overthinking since I am a newbie on Princess.

 

TA said that I want to be on the port side since it is the land side so going to the starboard side on the Emerald minis was out of the question. The minis on the Emerald do not, according to her, have the club class dining - just the minis mid ship, we are just past that. The increase was about $800 pp and it didn't seem worth it to me

 

The balcony we were looking at was a quad and no, it won't be set up as a quad but it also will not be set up as a queen, per Princess in response to my TA's question. Yes, it can be set up when we are there but why not do it prior rather than having to remaking the beds?

 

Re the uncovered balcony, unfortunately sun may not be a problem but I was also thinking that perhaps rain would on our South American cruise.

 

Obviously it is asking too much to change the ship's design but I had wondered why, when designing the ship, these limitations weren't thought of. With a suite, mini or not, I would think that location and covered balconies would be important particularly if this ship cruises in the Caribbean or another tropical area.

 

Looking at the deck plans online for sailings after Dec. 2016. all the minis on deck 8 do connect and they are all aft.

 

Last question - as we are going west to east from Valparaiso to Buenos Aires, do you think it matters whether we are starboard or port? How much land are we going to see? Does it matter when we are in port?

 

Once again, thanks for listening to my questions and your kind responses. Glad there are no snarky responses.

 

Jane

Edited August 26, 2016 by Valley Girl of VA

[shredie]

 

The balcony we were looking at was a quad and no, it won't be set up as a quad but it also will not be set up as a queen, per Princess in response to my TA's question. Yes, it can be set up when we are there but why not do it prior rather than having to remaking the beds?

 

 

 

Last question - as we are going west to east from Valparaiso to Buenos Aires, do you think it matters whether we are starboard or port? How much land are we going to see? Does it matter when we are in port?

 

 

The bed configuration will be adjusted on the day of turn around, when the former occupants leave and you arrive. If it's not done the way you want it when you get there, they can easily change things. I think your TA and Princess had a bit of a miscommunication. Maybe the Princess rep thought you were wanting a queen set up that was always a queen set up (or, more absurdly, that you wanted the quad people before you to sleep four to a bed so it would be ready for you. :D)

 

I've done the same cruise in the other direction, and I don't remember thinking about which way my balcony faced. I guess I spent time on deck when the cabin was not facing something I wanted to see. Most of the time, you'll be out at sea anyway. I don't remember any issues with the view in the ports (especially the tender ports.)

[fishywood]

On such a port intensive cruise, especially with several calls with very early morning tour departures, the music in Club Fusion should end by 11-11:30 most nights.

 

Yes there is a flaw in the cruise personalizer that does not allow you to select "queen" for the bed set-up in a quad cabin if only booked for two. If you arrive and find twins your steward will reset to queen likely during the muster drill, or no later than when you are at dinner.

 

There is absolutely no way to predict in advance whether the scenic cruising days will be sunny or rainy, warm or chilly. Or whether you will feel more comfortable on your balcony or on one of the open decks. Or where the better view will be (but hint: it is usually on the open deck, no matter which side your balcony is on).

 

I do hope letting off a little steam about these "issues" has helped you realize they are nowhere near dealbreaker level. (And please don't consider that to be a "snarky" remark; despite some problems with the cruiseline [not Princess] my South America cruise was one of my most memorable and I wish the same for you as well)

[JimmyVWine]

The "uncovered" aspect of the Dolphin Mini-Suites is way overblown. In our experience, we use the balcony in the morning for breakfast before heading out for the day; again in the late afternoon for some wine before dinner; and sometimes late at night after dinner and whatever else we do at night. In each of those instances, there is no blazing sun beating down on us, (half the time we are in complete shade depending on the angle of the sun), and no one is using up valuable cruise time staring at us like monkeys in the zoo. We are hardly, if ever, in our cabin in the middle of the day when heat and sun would be an issue. If there is a port stop that day, 100% of the time we are off the ship between 10:00 and 3:00. If it is a sea day, we are usually somewhere else on the ship. As for the rain, well, yes, that can put a damper on going outside. But truthfully, when the ship is under power at 20 knots and it is raining, having a cover overhead isn't always a panacea. It's better, sure. But no guarantee of being able to fully use the balcony.

 

As for why all the Dolphin Minis are uncovered, that is easy. No need to ask the ships' designer. Mini-Suites are bigger cabins with interior sitting areas. The only way to make the cabins longer is either have them jut out further from the edge of the ship, or have them push in further toward the interior of the ship. The latter can't really be done and still retain room for hallways and everything else that is in the interior spaces such as mechanics and Inside cabins. So the Minis have to stick out further than any other cabin in order to retain their size advantage. If you stop to think about it, the only way for Minis to be covered would be to make the balconies on the Caribe Deck the size of squash courts. That is both unnecessary and impractical. What else could you put on the Caribe Deck that could cover up the extended cabins? Lifeboats? That would impede the Caribe Deck cabins too much. So if you take a standard balcony cabin, add 6 feet (I'm guessing) of extra length, and add on a full size balcony, by definition that cabin has to stick out further than any other cabin on the ship and thus cannot receive coverage. The only possible solution would be to build two consecutive decks of Mini-Suites, one on top of the other. The lower of the two decks would be fully covered by the upper of the two decks, with the upper deck being uncovered. That is what you have at the aft on Emerald Deck. I suppose Princess could have made both Dolphin and Caribe Decks fully occupied by Mini-Suites and the result would be that 50% of the Minis would be covered. But that would leave the Caribe Deck Minis completely uncovered. And for operational reasons, Princess obviously decided not to have two full decks of Mini-Suites.

[skynight]

Thanks Everyone - I know I am overthinking since I am a newbie on Princess.

 

TA said that I want to be on the port side since it is the land side so going to the starboard side on the Emerald minis was out of the question.

Yes, the port side will be the land side, but you will see very little land, you are too far out in the ocean.

The minis on the Emerald do not, according to her, have the club class dining - just the minis mid ship, we are just past that. The increase was about $800 pp and it didn't seem worth it to me

Correct, the Club Class Dining are only the M1 class minis mid-ship on the Dolphin deck. You can see these on the deck plans.

 

The balcony we were looking at was a quad and no, it won't be set up as a quad but it also will not be set up as a queen, per Princess in response to my TA's question. Yes, it can be set up when we are there but why not do it prior rather than having to remaking the beds?

For one that has been on over 30 Princess cruises this does not sound correct to me. Look at the deck plans for this cabin. For some cabins when you click on them there is a note in red stating any differences. If there is no note you just select the queen configuration in the cruise personlizer. The cabin steward then arranges the cabin according to the request. If they make an error, just ask the steward to change it. Very easy.

 

Re the uncovered balcony, unfortunately sun may not be a problem but I was also thinking that perhaps rain would on our South American cruise.

I have been on this cruise. When there is scenic viewing the best views rain or shine are from the upper open decks and not from the balcony. Pack a rain coat.

 

Obviously it is asking too much to change the ship's design but I had wondered why, when designing the ship, these limitations weren't thought of. With a suite, mini or not, I would think that location and covered balconies would be important particularly if this ship cruises in the Caribbean or another tropical area.

 

Looking at the deck plans online for sailings after Dec. 2016. all the minis on deck 8 do connect and they are all aft.

Yes, this is correct

 

Last question - as we are going west to east from Valparaiso to Buenos Aires, do you think it matters whether we are starboard or port? How much land are we going to see? Does it matter when we are in port?

It really does not matter. As mentioned before when you are out in the ocean you really can't see anything scenic. In port who knows. Puerto Montt, Punta Areanas, Falklands are all tender ports. How the ship docks at other ports depends on lots of operational factors. You can never know. In any case these are all touring ports where you will be off the ship. When passing through the Straights of Magellan there are views on both sides, but the 4 Argentina southern glaciers will be on the port side.

 

Once again, thanks for listening to my questions and your kind responses. Glad there are no snarky responses.

 

Jane

Hope the above information helps.

[dchip]

We had 3 port minis on the Emerald deck of the Ruby in June. E720-22-24. We didn't hear any noise from Club Fusion. We had a connecting door with our son, DIL, and two rambunctious grands. We didn't hear a thing. Don't worry, go for the mini. It was fabulous.

 

Cheers, Denise

[ar1950]

................. So if you take a standard balcony cabin, add 6 feet (I'm guessing) of extra length, ................

 

I think it was more like 8 or 9 ft if I recall correctly.

 

As far as the Emerald deck minis, the further from the stage (located on the port side) you can get there will probably be no noise from Club Fusion. We had the furthest aft port cabin on the Emerald deck on the Star and we did hear noise, but, it rarely (once or twice on a fourteen day cruise) did it last beyond 10:00 pm. Others people located further forward on the port side and anywhere on the starboard side that we talked to heard nothing.

 

BTW, on cool sea days we actually would have appreciated an uncovered Dolphin cabin for the sun exposure.

[DrivesLikeMario]

It's only the back few cabins on the port side that have reported noise. The stage is on that side. No one has reported any noise that I'm aware of on the starboard side. And I've never heard of connecting cabins being an issue.

 

Jim

 

The problem with the starboard side is that it's directly above the smoking section on the deck below. Some people have reported the noise from these smokers talking, chatting, laughing, yelling, etc. is bothersome and others report the smoke is bothersome.

[Coral]

The problem with the starboard side is that it's directly above the smoking section on the deck below. Some people have reported the noise from these smokers talking, chatting, laughing, yelling, etc. is bothersome and others report the smoke is bothersome.

 

Been in these cabins many times (preferred location) and have never had this issue and I am extremely sensitive to smoke.

Edited August 27, 2016 by Coral

[tntfox]

The length of your cruise is going to dictate the demographics of your ship. The longer your cruise, the more likely people are going to retire early and not frequent the nightclubs. We were on 7-day cruise on the Ruby with much younger people in a port side mini and we were right above the bass player. Music ended around 11:00. I don't think you're going to have any problems w/noise.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Valley Girl of VA]

Once again, thank you all. You are making me feel so much better. I don't know why I was overblowing this selection - most likely because I haven't had much experience on Princess and it is a big cruise for us as. We certainly want to set ourselves up to enjoy and try to mitigate the problems before they become one by choosing for us the correct stateroom.

 

BTW, this appears to be a kinder board than other ones that I have been on. Thank you for that.

 

Hubby and I are off in less than two weeks for our river cruise on the Rhone - our third river cruise. I want to get this all settles by then so I won't have to think about it.

 

Jane

[Pam in CA]

I wouldn't waste time worrying about which side of the ship to book. There's no guarantee which way the ship will dock at each port. The ship could dock on the port or starboard side. I've taken this cruise several times and never worried about which side I'm booked. I'm more concerned about the price I'm paying.

 

I think you've been misled by your TA and stressing over issues that are non-issues. It sounds like your TA knows little to nothing about Princess which is concerning. They've given you misinformation.

 

FYI, Princess allows TAs to discount fares so I hope yours is giving you a really good rate. And I'm sure your TA has told you about the Military and shareholder OBC.