Pride of America balcony vs. suite

[kcbmarek]

14 years ago DH and I cruised on the Pride of Aloha as our first cruise together in an inside cabin. We loved the cruise through Hawaii and looking to repeat this trip in August 2018. This time, though, we are looking to book a balcony or suite. We have sailed in balcony cabins on NCL ships prior, but never a suite. Besides the additional space, are there additional perks that come with the suites? I am trying to justify the additional costs.

 

Any insight would be much appreciated.

[Manbo]

On the POA, I would save the money and go with the balcony. We spent hardly any time in our cabin. So for me it is easy, save the suite for a cruise with more time at sea!

[kcbmarek]

On the POA, I would save the money and go with the balcony. We spent hardly any time in our cabin. So for me it is easy, save the suite for a cruise with more time at sea!

 

Thanks Manbo. I am trying to justify the additional costs and it is true, we were only in our cabin to sleep on our first Hawaii cruise. I know we definitely do not want an inside cabin, so unless the perks can really justify the additional $, it will be a balcony.

[punkincc]

14 years ago DH and I cruised on the Pride of Aloha as our first cruise together in an inside cabin. We loved the cruise through Hawaii and looking to repeat this trip in August 2018. This time, though, we are looking to book a balcony or suite. We have sailed in balcony cabins on NCL ships prior, but never a suite. Besides the additional space, are there additional perks that come with the suites? I am trying to justify the additional costs.

 

Any insight would be much appreciated.

 

We had a suite on the POA for the post dry dock San Francisco to Honolulu cruise last year, so we had plenty of sea days to enjoy our suite on the way to Hawaii. But, I don't know if the extra suite expense would be worth it just for the regular 7 day HNL to HNL cruise, which we have also done, but from an aft facing balcony instead. You are in port all day, every day, so really very little time spent in the cabin.

 

That said, the suite amenities are very nice and you can find threads on this board which will spell them out in detail. You will have a special seating area pre boarding and will be walked on board by the Concierge or one of the Butlers. We boarded early, and were taken to the wine bar area outside of Cagney's restaurant which was set up as a Suites reception area with drinks and appetizers. The Concierge mingled with guests there and you were free to give him requests for reservations, etc.

 

One of the best perks is use of Cagney's for suite breakfasts and lunches. The Concierge will circulate there to see if there are any requests or problems. Also, the aforementioned Butler will take care of any in-suite needs, like in suite dining. He will bring afternoon appetizers. In Kona, the concierge will escort you to the tender boat when ready, no need for a tender ticket. Also, on final disembark you can be walked off the ship. There will be special suite gatherings attended by Senior Staff on the ship.

 

Note that Butler and Concierge are not included in the Daily Service Charge pool and should be tipped at the end of the cruise, so add that to the cost of a suite. Go for a cabin or suite on the port side for the Na Pali sail by after leaving port in Kauai. We spent several enjoyable hours there.

[DaisyGoldberg]

I would say POA is a ship I would be just as happy in a balcony as in a suite (haven't sailed on port-heavy European cruises, might feel the same about them).

 

If you plan to get off the ship every day of your cruise (and a lot of the ship tours or do it yourself expeditions take at least a half day), you're not going to spend much time in your room. Having the balcony will enable you to enjoy the scenery going in and out of each island, so I think to us it was definitely worth a balcony vs inside/ocean view, but we honestly would not have gotten the max out of the suite perks because we were up and out early, and to bed earlier than any other cruise I've been on -- seemed like the whole ship was! Much different from Caribbean itineraries where many people are just enjoying the ship itself and may or may not even get off at a given port.

 

The POA also has a lovely outdoor seating area to enjoy food from the buffet, so I wouldn't miss the suite dining room, either, especially for breakfast when you're looking to fuel up and start your day.

 

The first time we did a suite was on a back to back Canada/New England cruise, and it was awesome, because we were able to truly relax both inside the room and out. The main suite perks would be breakfast and lunch in the suite dining room, snacks delivered in the afternoon, priority boarding, and, of course, the additional space and comfort of the room itself. I'd save it for an itinerary where you'd take maximum advantage of enjoying those things.

[VideoTech]

Thanks Manbo. I am trying to justify the additional costs and it is true, we were only in our cabin to sleep on our first Hawaii cruise. I know we definitely do not want an inside cabin, so unless the perks can really justify the additional $, it will be a balcony.

 

We did a suite on our POA cruise, even though we knew the cruise was port-intensive and we were likely to be off the ship almost all day, every day. In spite of that, we didn't regret spending the money on the suite. It's truly relaxing to come back to the ship after a long day of touring or whatever, and have the space and comfort to relax in, to have the butler on call for drinks and snacks, and, in our case, to have our own hot tub on our balcony. THAT was a real luxury and worth every penny.

 

There's a link in my signature below to my POA review.

[Linda the Book Lover]

My DH and I book Suites/Haven but without a Haven area or a few sea days it just did not seem worth the money for my DD, DGD and I. We booked a port balcony especially to see Na Pali. We plan to soak up every second we can in Hawaii and not use the cabin as much. The balcony is for my DD and I to relax on when my DGD goes to bed at night or sailaways. Now if NCL wants to gift us a suite - I would not turn it down...LOL;)

[Buddy Bear]

We have 13000 on the 8/26/2017 sailing. This will be our first trip to Hawaii (Aulani/NCL) and since I didn't know if we'd ever get back I am sparing no expense. I like to prepay where ever I can, I plan to purchase an OBC to cover excursions, dinner, etc.

 

We are also prepaying tips. I know the Concierge and Butler's tips are separate. Can anyone give me a ballpark idea of what is fair? Not sure what to base it on.

 

Thanks

[Linda the Book Lover]

The amount is a personal choice. We begin with a starting dollar amount and add from there. Some go with $10 per person per day and some slightly less or more. It depends on how much you request from the Butler and the Concierge. Any special requests which are not something we do, should also add to the amount of the tip. Some people do not believe in giving tips even though these two hard working individuals are not part of the DSC. There are many threads with opinions on this sometimes "sensitive" topic. We also tip our room steward who in our opinion always made sure our coffee machine was clean and ready with extra of the coffee we prefered, kept our cabin ship shape and of course made towel animals.

[Buddy Bear]

The amount is a personal choice. We begin with a starting dollar amount and add from there. Some go with $10 per person per day and some slightly less or more. It depends on how much you request from the Butler and the Concierge. Any special requests which are not something we do, should also add to the amount of the tip. Some people do not believe in giving tips even though these two hard working individuals are not part of the DSC. There are many threads with opinions on this sometimes "sensitive" topic. We also tip our room steward who in our opinion always made sure our coffee machine was clean and ready with extra of the coffee we prefered, kept our cabin ship shape and of course made towel animals.

 

OK. I was thinking of it as a total tip for the Butler and Concierge at the end of the cruise, but I see that it makes sense (at least to me) to tip as you go. We like to tip so I wanted to make sure I don't short the folks that take care of us the most. Thanks!

[VideoTech]

OK. I was thinking of it as a total tip for the Butler and Concierge at the end of the cruise, but I see that it makes sense (at least to me) to tip as you go. We like to tip so I wanted to make sure I don't short the folks that take care of us the most. Thanks!

We have always tipped at the end of the cruise, but can see some sense to tipping as you go along too. Some people prefer to tip (or perhaps do a portion of the tip) right up front...not sure i agree with that as I still believe tipping is a response to service given.

 

We always tip our cabin steward - in fact, often as much as the butler. It's our opinion that the cabin steward does as much if not more to insure the comfort of your cruise, and he or she is often the lowest paid of the three (steward, butler, concierge).

[Linda the Book Lover]

OK. I was thinking of it as a total tip for the Butler and Concierge at the end of the cruise, but I see that it makes sense (at least to me) to tip as you go. We like to tip so I wanted to make sure I don't short the folks that take care of us the most. Thanks!

 

I wrote unclearly - I meant you add and subtract as you wish throughout your cruise and then give the amount at the end of the cruise. I am so sorry I wrote in a confused manner. :o