Please help me decide between SS and SV

[SusieV]

With the current sale on, I was checking prices to get refared, and noticed that the higher category cabins have come down as well. I was hoping to get opinions on what I should do.

 

I'm an experienced Celebrity cruiser (sailing since 2005) but I've never had a suite due to budgetary constraints. For this upcoming trip next year on Millennium, we have a B2B booked. On the first leg, we have an inside cabin since prices are rather high to upgrade to balcony, and oceanview is less appealing. On the second leg, we currently have a SV booked. I've cruised in the cabins at the aft before and I love the oversized balcony.

 

We could upgrade to an S2, and I think it would net out to approximately $1800 total for the 7 day trip after all the factors are considered (additional OBC, drink package upgrade that we'd pay for, etc). Our son is traveling in a different cabin with grandparents. I understand the grandparents can't come into Luminae or the Retreat, but would our son be allowed? We would normally eat a few nights in the specialty restaurants anyway without grandparents so I wouldn't worry about eating without them in Luminae.

 

Budget is an issue when cruising so a suite has never been a consideration. Is it worth that much over an SV? If I could upgrade for that amount from my inside on the first leg, I'd do it for sure, but it's considerably more expensive on that trip.

 

Any thoughts are appreciated!

[DaKahuna]

3 minutes ago, SusieV said:

Our son is traveling in a different cabin with grandparents. I understand the grandparents can't come into Luminae or the Retreat, but would our son be allowed? We would normally eat a few nights in the specialty restaurants anyway without grandparents so I wouldn't worry about eating without them in Luminae.

 

Unless your son is also traveling in a suite he would only be allowed to eat in Luminae with you if you arranged it with the Maitre'd and payed the fee.   Luminate is restricted to suite guest and that does not include immediate family members not traveling in suites. 

[SusieV]

Just now, DaKahuna said:

Unless your son is also traveling in a suite he would only be allowed to eat in Luminae with you if you arranged it with the Maitre'd and payed the fee.   Luminate is restricted to suite guest and that does not include immediate family members not traveling in suites. 

Really? even minor children?

[DaKahuna]

Just now, SusieV said:

Really? even minor children?

This has been our experience.  But have not sailed post-COVID so it can't hurt to ask.  

 

[Silkroad]

43 minutes ago, SusieV said:

Really? even minor children?

The only children I saw in Luminae and the Retreat on my recent cruise were those in a family group including grandma. As I saw them both together and separately in suite only areas, I’m confident they were all in one or more suites. My understanding is that you would be able to take your son to Luminae on a space available basis, and you would pay an upcharge for him. BTW our cruise wasn’t full, but suites were completely booked. This has been the case for most recent cruises. 

[Ken the cruiser]

A couple questions for you.

 

1. Do you require butler services when you cruise?

 

2. Have you read about all of the exclusive areas, excluding the Luminae, that come with booking a suite? If so, can you realistically picture using any of those to any extent if your other family members staying in non-suite cabins are not allowed to congregate in them with you?

 

3. As far as the Luminae goes, I would think as others have noted your son would not be allowed to eat in the Luminae unless you paid the extra fee. Why would he since you chose the more inexpensive route not to book him as a third person in your suite cabin.

 

My opinion. It just so happens at this very moment we are cruising in a SV on the Apex and back in August we were in a sky suite on the Edge. When comparing these two experiences we’re finding the additional cost for booking a suite in the future is not worth the upcharge to us if we can book either an aft-facing SV or aft-facing Aqua cabin. Why you ask? Because we do not require a butler, we do not use to any significant extent the Retreat Lounge or any of the other Retreat designated areas around the ship, the aft-facing non-suite cabins have a much better view from their balcony, and we really don’t need the extra cabin space a sky suite cabin provides. But, that’s just us. You may have different needs and desires.

[goofysmom99]

S2s on M-class ships aren't the same as sky suites on S-class or E-class.  Any aft cabin on an M-class ship would be my first choice over an M-class S2 or even an S1, except 6145/6, and maybe even then.  The MDR food is every bit as good as Luminae, too.  I spent 19 days dining in Luminae last month on the Summit and ordered more than half my meals from MDR or Blu menus. This month I'm skipping the middleman with two cruises on Summit in an aft cabin, dining in MDR.  

 

And the Retreat and Retreat sundeck on M-class ships are way overrated.

 

 

Edited November 7, 2021 by goofysmom99

[hasentreelake]

I would take the advice offered by Ken the Cruiser and goofysMom99.
Particularly if you are saying it will cost $1800 to upgrade.  

 

[cdn_tbird]

17 minutes ago, hasentreelake said:

I would take the advice offered by Ken the Cruiser and goofysMom99.
Particularly if you are saying it will cost $1800 to upgrade.  

 

In this case I'm with the others and would stay in the SV. $1800 could buy a lot of "extras" that you could enjoy with your son & the grandparents. 

[LGW59]

4 minutes ago, cdn_tbird said:

In this case I'm with the others and would stay in the SV. $1800 could buy a lot of "extras" that you could enjoy with your son & the grandparents. 

Agree and there is certainly nothing wrong with the food in the MDRs.  Use the $1800 to splurge in a specialty dining venue, bet your son would get a kick out of le petit chef.

[Lastdance]

What is more important to you, the suite experience or the money?  My opinion, based on the information you have given is that an SV would meet your needs perfectly due to traveling with family, as more time is taken up when family members are also cruising.  Save the suite experience for another time when a good splurge is worth experiencing and the price is in the budget.

Edited November 8, 2021 by Lastdance

[Ken the cruiser]

Just to reemphasize the value of an aft-facing cabin, here’s a picture taken last night from our SV on the Apex as we were leaving San Juan, Puerto Rico.

 

.

 

 

Edited November 8, 2021 by Ken the cruiser

[TeeRick]

If you have the $1800 try the suite.

[SusieV]

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. I know our cabin is awesome. The idea of trying Luminae was just very exciting, and the Retreat. I didn't realize there was no pool in the Retreat area, so that's less exciting. Having to pay to bring our son is also unappealing.

 

I think we will stay in the SV. Thank you for the advice!

[ShawninFL]

5 hours ago, SusieV said:

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. I know our cabin is awesome. The idea of trying Luminae was just very exciting, and the Retreat. I didn't realize there was no pool in the Retreat area, so that's less exciting. Having to pay to bring our son is also unappealing.

 

I think we will stay in the SV. Thank you for the advice!

I think you made a wise choice.  With the specifics of your travel situation, I don't think you'd get to truly enjoy the included feature of being in a suite.  You're better off saving the $1800.00 for a future suite upgrade when you're not traveling with others not in a suite.