New to Princess and having trouble choosing between Mini's and Club Class Mini's

[Luckybee]

We're looking at a cruise from Ny To Lauderdale for Nov 2020 on the Sky Princess as part of a longer trip.. We're currently booked on Royal but would have to fly to Aruba afterwards and on this itinerary we could disembark right in Aruba(a couple of days earlier).We normally do suites on Royal but so far haven't seen the value on Princess of so doing from the perks listed and from what we've seen so far the suites dont seem to have a value proposition for us( no special pools, sun decks, restaurants etc.) and from what we're read the aft suites with the large balconies seem to have a problem with soot (which would drive me crazy) We had thought that a club class mini suite might be ideal but in reading reviews etc. it seems that all of the cc minis on this style ship lack privacy in that those on the Seawalk can see directly into the balconies ?  

Ideally we'd like a larger balcony but not if we have no privacy. Would also like something at least 300 sq ft or larger all in.

Can anyone assist in helping us choose the right type of suite /location 

[skynight]

22 minutes ago, Luckybee said:

We're looking at a cruise from Ny To Lauderdale for Nov 2020 on the Sky Princess as part of a longer trip.. We're currently booked on Royal but would have to fly to Aruba afterwards and on this itinerary we could disembark right in Aruba(a couple of days earlier).We normally do suites on Royal but so far haven't seen the value on Princess of so doing from the perks listed and from what we've seen so far the suites dont seem to have a value proposition for us( no special pools, sun decks, restaurants etc.) and from what we're read the aft suites with the large balconies seem to have a problem with soot (which would drive me crazy) We had thought that a club class mini suite might be ideal but in reading reviews etc. it seems that all of the cc minis on this style ship lack privacy in that those on the Seawalk can see directly into the balconies ?  

Ideally we'd like a larger balcony but not if we have no privacy. Would also like something at least 300 sq ft or larger all in.

Can anyone assist in helping us choose the right type of suite /location 

Sky Princess.

In order to disembark in Aurba you would have to obtain special permission from Princess HQ. It should not be an issue, but you almost certainly would have to pay for the full cruise.

Princess does not offer pools, sun decks , restaurants for full suite passengers. It's not the way they operate. Almost all areas and services on the ship are open to all passengers. Full suite passengers can get the special mimosa breakfast each morning which is held in one of the specialty restaurants, Club Class dining for all meals, a concierge lounge, room service from the full DR menu and some other things.

Club Class dining is Anytime Dining. Walk in anytime the DR is open and you should be seated fairly quickly. DR's are open for breakfast and dinner every day and lunch on sea days. Club Class dining is a section of one of the DR's. On the Sky probably Deck 6 mid ship. The menu is the same as the regular DR except there is an extra menu item usually prepared table side and the attention to service is greater. Club Class dining is available to anyone in a full suite or Club Class Mini Suite.

On the Sky Club Class mini suites are categories M1 and M6. The M1 minis are located mid ship on decks 11, 12 & 14. There are four M6 minis on decks 15 & 16 forward. You can locate these on the deck plans on the Princess web site.

Unlike previous Royal class ships which had an opening on deck 16 between the decking and the skywalk, the Sky has a solid deck on deck 16. The views onto the balconies which were on previous ships should not be there on the Sky.

Since this ship has not sailed no one has any experience regarding the soot issue which was present on the Royal and Regal. There should be additional information in a month or so.

Hope this helps.

[Luckybee]

Thanks so much for your reply.

 

I realize we have to get approval to disembark early, and pay for the whole cruise. Overall it's considerably less than what we were going to pay for the Royal cruise, plus an extra flight so it's all good in any event :)

The soot issue was something I had read about on the sister ships and not something I'd be willing to chance. I suppose if the problem doesnt continue with this ship we could upgrade later if still available.

The info on the CC Mini suites is great and given that info is what we will likely book...it was my inclination until I had read about the Seawalk , so the non peeping Tom mini's sound much better....lol.

 

The M6's are all booked....do you have any particular M1's that you would suggest, or if anyone else does?

Esp any that have larger balconies ?

Edited September 4, 2019 by Luckybee

[cr8tiv1]

Welcome to Princess.  Mini-Suites on a Princess ship is a misnamed category.  Mini-suites (reg/cc) is "just" a larger balcony room.  Full suites, on the other hand, will include Club Class dining and a special dining room for breakfast.  I have not been on any of the larger ships so unable to comment on balcony and locations.  

[skynight]

28 minutes ago, Luckybee said:

Thanks so much for your reply.

 

I realize we have to get approval to disembark early, and pay for the whole cruise. Overall it's considerably less than what we were going to pay for the Royal cruise, plus an extra flight so it's all good in any event 🙂

The soot issue was something I had read about on the sister ships and not something I'd be willing to chance. I suppose if the problem doesnt continue with this ship we could upgrade later if still available.

The info on the CC Mini suites is great and given that info is what we will likely book...it was my inclination until I had read about the Seawalk , so the non peeping Tom mini's sound much better....lol.

 

The M6's are all booked....do you have any particular M1's that you would suggest, or if anyone else does?

Esp any that have larger balconies ?

I would choose the ones with the larger angled balconies, if available. These can be seen on the deck plans. I would also prefer decks 12 & 11 over deck 14. More mid ship up & down.

[Mike45LC]

Differences between the mini-suites (I agree that this is a misnomer) and the Club Class mini-suites (same misnomer): 

 

On the Grand Class ships, physically, the Club Class are more midship than the regular mini-suites.  As you move from forward and from aft, there are some (small) price increases.  A portion of the Club Class extra cost is the fact that these cabins are the most mid-ship.

 

The major difference is that the Club Class cabins are all Anytime Dining with a super-priority for seating.  Yes, there is a separate section of the dining room for the Club Class, and they get fewer tables per waiter, and there is one extra entrée on their menu.  But the real perk is that they are generally not made to wait for seating.

 

I think Club Class might get a few of the Elite perks as well -- maybe priority boarding and priority tendering -- but I get those as Elite, so I don't pay attention to them as Club Class perks-- if I am already priority, it doesn't count twice!!

 

[skynight]

12 hours ago, Mike45LC said:

I think Club Class might get a few of the Elite perks as well -- maybe priority boarding and priority tendering -- but I get those as Elite, so I don't pay attention to them as Club Class perks-- if I am already priority, it doesn't count twice!!

 

No priority tendering. Priority boarding yes.

https://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/ships/club-class/ClubClass-eFlyer.pdf

[memoak]

2 half bottles of wine. One white and one red I believe

[Oak City Man]

22 hours ago, cr8tiv1 said:

 Mini-Suites on a Princess ship is a misnamed category.  Mini-suites (reg/cc) is "just" a larger balcony room.  

Mini Suites are generally a 100 sq. feet larger than a balcony.  They have a sitting area with a couch and a 2nd TV.  They also have a tub in the bathroom, which means a larger shower.  So, mini's are not just a larger balcony.  This is a significantly better cabin.

 

As for Club Class, I do not think they are worth the extra money.  The only perk that really stands out is priority seating in the MDR.  Priority boarding may be nice if there is a wait to board, but in my (limited) experience we have boarded with little delay.  With Medallion Net this should become even less of an issue as the whole process will be expedited with "Ocean Ready".

 

 

[jondfk]

Club Class vs a standard Mini I'd say is worth a few (very few) dollars per day premium IMHO.  In my experience Club Class dining room service is far better than ATD but little if any better than "traditional" dining (Princess nomenclature for fixed seating).  We've had as good, or better, service from a fixed service team than the CC staff although I agree the latter aim to please.  Club Class is nice, but it's absolutely not worth the premium that's sometimes asked.  At $10 pp/pd I think there's value there, higher that this, not for me.  

[cr8tiv1]

1 hour ago, Oak City Man said:

Mini Suites are generally a 100 sq. feet larger than a balcony.  They have a sitting area with a couch and a 2nd TV.  They also have a tub in the bathroom, which means a larger shower.  So, mini's are not just a larger balcony.  This is a significantly better cabin.

 

As for Club Class, I do not think they are worth the extra money.  The only perk that really stands out is priority seating in the MDR.  Priority boarding may be nice if there is a wait to board, but in my (limited) experience we have boarded with little delay.  With Medallion Net this should become even less of an issue as the whole process will be expedited with "Ocean Ready".

 

 

 

My point here is that a mini is not a suite as the name implies.  Yes, it is larger.  Yes, it has 2 televisions, Yes, it has a bathtub.  Yes, it has more room.   But the CC Mini-Suite does not come with any suite perks except priority boarding and 2 splits of wine.  The configuration is that of a balcony (with the added living room area).  In my opinion, it is just a glorified balcony and the name should reflect that (such as deluxe balcony, expanded balcony, premium balcony.  

 

Okay, I'm stepping down off of my soap box.

Edited September 5, 2019 by cr8tiv1

[MJSailors]

   We are booked in a mid-ship, angled balcony, mini suite on Caribe deck for the March 7 cruise on the Sky Princess.

A Club Class mini suite did not appeal to us as we already have priority boarding and an “enhanced” MDR experience was not a priority as we rarely have dinner in the dining room. On occasions when we do go to the MDR, Anytime Dining is fine for us.

    Since you have had experience with RCCL, Luckybee, I would compare the size of a Princess mini suite to  a Junior Suite on RCCL.

You could do a dummy booking on the Princess web site for the cruise you are interested in and there,you could compare cabin size,balcony dimensions and location on the deck plans.  You could look at three categories of cabins - Deluxe Balcony,mini suite and suites ( there are several levels of suites also,some of which are located mid ship- they are not only located in the Aft )

      One thing that we do appreciate in the mini suites is the curtain that separates the sitting area from the bed. If one of us wants to nap and the other wants to read, it provides  a partition for each one’s comfort.

     We have done the repositioning cruise from NYC to Ft Lauderdale on the Regal Princess and we enjoyed that cruise very much,namely for the amount of sea days.

[Oak City Man]

3 hours ago, cr8tiv1 said:

My point here is that a mini is not a suite as the name implies.  Yes, it is larger.  Yes, it has 2 televisions, Yes, it has a bathtub.  Yes, it has more room.   But the CC Mini-Suite does not come with any suite perks except priority boarding and 2 splits of wine.  The configuration is that of a balcony (with the added living room area).  In my opinion, it is just a glorified balcony and the name should reflect that (such as deluxe balcony, expanded balcony, premium balcony.  

 

Okay, I'm stepping down off of my soap box.

 

So your point is that a mini suite is not the same as a suite.  Good thing they are named differently.   I also think most people are aware of the differences. 

Edited September 5, 2019 by Oak City Man

[Iamcruzin]

2 hours ago, Oak City Man said:

 

So your point is that a mini suite is not the same as a suite.  Good thing they are named differently.   I also think most people are aware of the differences. 

People who have sailed Princess would known. The OP is a first timer and mini suites on Celebrity and Royal Caribbean come with an entire set of benefits that Princess truly lacks which is why they developed club class to compete. However club class doesn’t come close to what other lines offer.

[Colo Cruiser]

3 hours ago, Oak City Man said:

 

So your point is that a mini suite is not the same as a suite.  Good thing they are named differently.   I also think most people are aware of the differences. 

How do you know this?

[Oak City Man]

3 hours ago, Colo Cruiser said:

How do you know this?

 

I'm making a logical dedication.  It's pretty obvious that a mini suite is not the same thing as a suite.  "Mini" implies a lower level of accommodation. A quick look at the cabin layout will clear any up any questions on the matter.  Note I said "most", not all.  

 

I was mainly taking issue with the hairsplitting by the poster who insisted that a mini suite should be called a premium balcony.  A term Princes already uses for balcony cabins in desirable locations.   

[Colo Cruiser]

16 minutes ago, Oak City Man said:

 

I'm making a logical dedication.  It's pretty obvious that a mini suite is not the same thing as a suite.  "Mini" implies a lower level of accommodation. A quick look at the cabin layout will clear any up any questions on the matter.  Note I said "most", not all.  

 

I was mainly taking issue with the hairsplitting by the poster who insisted that a mini suite should be called a premium balcony.  A term Princes already uses for balcony cabins in desirable locations.   

There are a large number of posters that actually thought they get suite perks with this cabin and are very surprised when someone answers their comment/question with info to the contrary.

That in itself is a red flag as far as I am concerned and tells me that those posters haven't got a clue of what a mini suite actually is.

I have always said that these cabins should not be called suites in any way shape or form. 

It is very misleading.

[MJSailors]

   Celebrity has Sky Suites similar to a Princess mini suite,but Celebrity offers a dedicated restaurant, lounge (Michael’s Club on some ships,the Retreat area on the Edge and some of the renovated ships ie Summit) and possibly a sun deck area. These are perks that accompany full suite cabins.

   Royal Caribbean offers Junior Suites that offer perks that are given to full suite passengers.

     This causes confusion for new Princess customers who are used to perks for similar size cabins on other lines when they consider booking min suites.

  To add to the confusion,some cruise lines include a sofa in balcony cabins,including NCL, RCCL,Carnivsl and Disney. Those customers may book a balcony cabin on Princess to find a barrel chair (or not) when they expected a sofa in the cabin.

If new customers to Princess want a sofa in the cabin, they need to book a Deluxe Balcony or mini suite. But if they see the term mini suite,they can’ t expect the full suite perks given to passengers on Princess.

  

[jennybenny]

Best part about a club class mini suite is the ability to have dinner at any time without a wait. There is the half bottles of wine (meh) but that's not worth much. Outside of that, the size of the cabin is not larger than a regular mini suite and is (half?) the size of suite.

As people have commented, the price for Club class mini doesn't always justify the benefit. However, I did love club class dining and if the price was reasonable, I'd do it.

[laktex]

4 hours ago, Colo Cruiser said:

There are a large number of posters that actually thought they get suite perks with this cabin and are very surprised when someone answers their comment/question with info to the contrary.

That in itself is a red flag as far as I am concerned and tells me that those posters haven't got a clue of what a mini suite actually is.

I have always said that these cabins should not be called suites in any way shape or form. 

It is very misleading.

 

Well, many cruise lines, including Princess, refer to their accommodations as STATEROOMS  - I suggest this to be a more significant misnomer than the mini-suite terminology. 

 

That said, I think the Princess brochure describes the expectations of each of their accommodations pretty well. 

 

Edited September 6, 2019 by laktex
Expansion

[Colo Cruiser]

3 hours ago, laktex said:

 

Well, many cruise lines, including Princess, refer to their accommodations as STATEROOMS  - I suggest this to be a more significant misnomer than the mini-suite terminology. 

 

That said, I think the Princess brochure describes the expectations of each of their accommodations pretty well. 

 

Yet they still ask what suite benefits come with a mini.  🤔

Last time I checked we are not talking about “many other cruise lines” and we are not talking about the word “stateroom”.

Come on now....... stay focused! 

[Oak City Man]

Once again, I was referring to the actual cabin itself, not perks.  I was replying to a poster that was insisting there was little difference between a balcony and a mini suite IN TERMS OF THE CABIN ITSELF.

 

As for the perks, I agree with laktex.  The benefits are clearly explained in the Princess promotional material as well as on its website.  If someone does a minimum amount of research they will quickly find this information.  

 

1 hour ago, Colo Cruiser said:

Yet they still ask what suite benefits come with a mini.  🤔

 

 

This is on them.  Do a little homework.  It's not hard.

[AF-1]

On 9/4/2019 at 10:10 AM, Luckybee said:

We're looking at a cruise from Ny To Lauderdale for Nov 2020 on the Sky Princess as part of a longer trip.. We're currently booked on Royal but would have to fly to Aruba afterwards and on this itinerary we could disembark right in Aruba(a couple of days earlier).We normally do suites on Royal but so far haven't seen the value on Princess of so doing from the perks listed and from what we've seen so far the suites dont seem to have a value proposition for us( no special pools, sun decks, restaurants etc.) and from what we're read the aft suites with the large balconies seem to have a problem with soot (which would drive me crazy) We had thought that a club class mini suite might be ideal but in reading reviews etc. it seems that all of the cc minis on this style ship lack privacy in that those on the Seawalk can see directly into the balconies ?  

Ideally we'd like a larger balcony but not if we have no privacy. Would also like something at least 300 sq ft or larger all in.

Can anyone assist in helping us choose the right type of suite /location 

I had aft suite in Feb.  Big balcony and no soot. Since no one has been on Sky I can't give you info about suite locations; just wanted to let you know about my feedback.  If you have any other suite questions let me know.  Have a great day

[Mike45LC]

11 hours ago, laktex said:

 

Well, many cruise lines, including Princess, refer to their accommodations as STATEROOMS  - I suggest this to be a more significant misnomer than the mini-suite terminology. 

 

That said, I think the Princess brochure describes the expectations of each of their accommodations pretty well. 

 

"The Princess brochure"?  I sometimes get an annual cruise atlas, but I think brochures are things of the past!  I don't even know where there is a brick and mortar travel agency that stocks cruise brochures!

 

The term "mini-suite" suggests that the cabin is a small suite.  A Princess mini-suite is NOT a miniature suite, it is not a suite at all.  So the name is misleading.  [Not as bad a fraud as for Celebrity to call its large window ocean view cabin an Infinite Veranda, but …]  

 

I do not understand how it is misleading for a cruise line to call a cabin a "stateroom."  A private compartment on a train or ship -- exactly what the cabin is!

 

[laktex]

1 hour ago, Mike45LC said:

"The Princess brochure"?  I sometimes get an annual cruise atlas, but I think brochures are things of the past!  I don't even know where there is a brick and mortar travel agency that stocks cruise brochures!

 

The term "mini-suite" suggests that the cabin is a small suite.  A Princess mini-suite is NOT a miniature suite, it is not a suite at all.  So the name is misleading.  [Not as bad a fraud as for Celebrity to call its large window ocean view cabin an Infinite Veranda, but …]  

 

I do not understand how it is misleading for a cruise line to call a cabin a "stateroom."  A private compartment on a train or ship -- exactly what the cabin is!

 

 

Personally,  I can pick up a Princess brochure at any of my local travel agents, alternatively they are fully downloadable.