Suite on E class ships

[Iteach 38]

Can anyone tell me if a Sky Suite is worth almost two and a half times an Aqua cabin on the E class ships?  Looking to book on Beyond.  We usually book Aqua on the other class ships.  Never been on an E class ship.  I know about the perks, just wondering if the price is worth it.  Thanks.

[Jim_Iain]

That is pretty much an impossible question to answer.  My values are totally different than yours.   This is not a criticism.   We each define worth and value from a personal perspective. 

 

For me it is worth it.    Having said that we also travel Aqua and very much enjoy it but miss the Retreat and Butler service.

[LGW59]

It really is a very subjective and personal decision/perspective.  For us it is def worth it, Luminae, Retreat and great butler make it well worth it.  I guess you would need to do an analysis of the different perks offered in SS's v Aqua and determine if worth the cost diff to you.  We also spend a good deal of time in our room, i.e. everyday breakfast on balcony weather permitting or just in the room.  On sea days having a quiet balcony for snacks and libations and doing the same again in the evening.  BEYOND prices right now, being the new kid on the block, are very high as I am sure you have noticed.  So high in fact, that for an upcoming 10 day cruise we have on EDGE, thought we'd look to compare to a similar suite on BEYOND, for a 7 day cruise (which we'd not do) the diff between EDGE and BEYOND was +$7k on BEYOND for 3 less nights.  No thanks, we can wait a few years for it to settle down.

[George C]

Prices go up and down, I think we got a really good deal , got a corner aft sky suite on beyond for under 3k per person, with drink package, free tips, WiFi, 400 on board credit per. 7 nights in November, price now is about 1k more per.

[kwokpot]

1 hour ago, Iteach 38 said:

Can anyone tell me if a Sky Suite is worth almost two and a half times an Aqua cabin on the E class ships?  Looking to book on Beyond.  We usually book Aqua on the other class ships.  Never been on an E class ship.  I know about the perks, just wondering if the price is worth it.  Thanks.

You asked a question, so I'm going to answer it. As someone who just completed two separate cruises in Retreat Class for the first time and enjoyed both cruises I would say no, Retreat Class isn't worth over twice the price of an Aquaclass cabin on the same ship.

Yes the Retreat Lounge is a wonderful private space but E-Class ships have wonderful spaces all over the ship. The amenities in the Retreat Lounge arent necessarily exclusive if you have a Drink package and for snacks and munchies there's always someplace else to get food on the ship. 

I would much rather take two cruises in Aquaclass for the same money spent on a Retreat Class cabin.

[bruzin_for_a_cruizin]

As above, noone can decide "worth it" for you. Everyone's financial situation and vacation checklist is different.

For me and my bride of 30 years, we did a MoveUp on our last 7-night APEX cruise from Concierge (IV) to a Sky Suite. We enjoyed the experience so much, we used Next Cruise to book a 10-night next November in a suite. After taking advantage of the BlackFriday sale for a price drop, the 10-night comes to $8000 for the two of us, with $2300 in OBC (combined Celebrity + TA OBC).

Individually, there wasn't any one element of the suite experience which tipped the scales, but the ocean-facing bed, the true balcony, the Retreat sun-deck and Luminae all add up to making the uplift "worth it" for us.

[jelayne]

We have  done 2 cruises in E class Sky Suites and have 6 more booked. Personally I wouldn't pay 2.5 times the price of Aqua.   We have been paying in the  35-50%  more for a SS than AQ but anything beyond that isn't  worth it to us. 

Having said that we are among those that don't care for Luminae  so that part of the Retreat has minimal value to us.   We dine in AQ when there is space, a speciality restaurant or on of the MDRs.  

[RichYak]

2 hours ago, Iteach 38 said:

Can anyone tell me if a Sky Suite is worth almost two and a half times an Aqua cabin on the E class ships?  Looking to book on Beyond.  We usually book Aqua on the other class ships.  Never been on an E class ship.  I know about the perks, just wondering if the price is worth it.  Thanks.

The answer is simpler since you asked specifically about E-class ships. AQ cabins don't have balconies on E-class so for me, that makes the decision to pay up for a suite over AQ easier. I would also consider an SV cabin. That said, I personally wouldn't pay top dollar for a suite on E-class again unless there was a particular itinerary I liked. I'm more of a Summit/Millennium fan.

[CalTexCruiser]

When one poses a question of whether a suite is worth 2.5x any lower level cabin, then the answer has to be no, because the amenities of the suite are not 2.5x more in value than the lower level cabin, from strictly an objective cost-benefit analysis.

 

However, for those of us who enjoy the suite amenities, then yes the increased cost of the suite is worth it because we would otherwise not enjoy the cruise as much without the suite amenities.

 

All comes down to personal preference and what your individual situation is.

 

Same question for coach vs first/business class when flying...no way is first/business class "worth" the greater than 4x premium over coach, but for some, they have to fly in premium class otherwise it would not be as enjoyable.

[kwokpot]

5 minutes ago, CalTexCruiser said:

Same question for coach vs first/business class when flying...no way is first/business class "worth" the greater than 4x premium over coach, but for some, they have to fly in premium class otherwise it would not be as enjoyable.

Perfect analogous situation and agree wholeheartedly with your summary.

[Moby Jones]

3 hours ago, Iteach 38 said:

Can anyone tell me if a Sky Suite is worth almost two and a half times an Aqua cabin on the E class ships?  Looking to book on Beyond.  We usually book Aqua on the other class ships.  Never been on an E class ship.  I know about the perks, just wondering if the price is worth it.  Thanks.

Only you can answer that as others have said. We only book aqua class and sky suites so I can give you my thoughts that some will certainly disagree with.Other may see where I'm coming from. 

On an E class ship specifically I wouldn't book an aqua class cabin because they have the infinite verandah which I dislike greatly. I don't think I'll ever book one to be  brutally honest. Annoyingly on E class ships, verandah choices are limited. So with that in mind I'd be prepared to pay a big premium for a sky suite as E class choices are limited. 

I do find Luminae a step up  from Blu. Though as I said in a previous post I prefer the M and S class versions of Luminae. The E class version is a lot larger and has lost the  intimacy enjoyed on the older ships. 

The  Retreat lounge and sun deck are nice spaces to be. You won't get these with Aqua class. So with that in mind I'd add value on an itinerary if there were many sea days. On a port intensive itinerary where you plan to be off the ship a lot it won't have as much value. 

But 2.5 times the cost is a lot. So in all honesty I'd probably not pay such a large up charge. Unless of course the aqua fare was extremely low in the first place. 

[Iteach 38]

Thank you all so much for the replies.  They are really appreciated.  A lot of good and honest information.  Thank you all again.

[mac_tlc]

Great responses so far. Our last three E class were Sky Suites and our next 5 are also. One thing we appreciate as much as Luminae and Retreat Lounge is the extra space in the cabin. That advantage is not often mentioned, but we like to have breakfast in the cabin and the occasional afternoon nap so the extra space is worth something to us also. 
 

We do have a limit on how much we will spend, and somehow got a great deal on Beyond in January 2023, and in some cases will not cruise if it’s too expensive rather than go in a smaller cabin. 

 

mac_tlc

Edited March 18, 2022 by mac_tlc

[TennesseeNationVol]

3 hours ago, Iteach 38 said:

Can anyone tell me if a Sky Suite is worth almost two and a half times an Aqua cabin on the E class ships?  Looking to book on Beyond.  We usually book Aqua on the other class ships.  Never been on an E class ship.  I know about the perks, just wondering if the price is worth it.  Thanks.

To chime in, it’s worth it to me.  The embarkation lounge is a true luxury and a value-add, as well as priority disembarkation. 

[jelayne]

13 minutes ago, TennesseeNationVol said:

To chime in, it’s worth it to me.  The embarkation lounge is a true luxury and a value-add, as well as priority disembarkation. 

We have cruised in suites on and off for 7 years  and have never done anything but walk past the embarkation lounge (in ports that have them).  What is in the embarkation lounge that we missed?   I saw some coffee, juice and sweet rolls, is there more?

[jagoffee]

16 minutes ago, jelayne said:

We have cruised in suites on and off for 7 years  and have never done anything but walk past the embarkation lounge (in ports that have them).  What is in the embarkation lounge that we missed?   I saw some coffee, juice and sweet rolls, is there more?

If you never arrive prior to the start of boarding, then there would be no need for an embarkation lounge.  

[jelayne]

2 hours ago, jagoffee said:

If you never arrive prior to the start of boarding, then there would be no need for an embarkation lounge.  

That it explains it!  Much rather have a leisurely breakfast and arrive around 11:30 and go right on the ship.

[TeeRick]

Do you buy a BMW or Mercedes instead of a Ford or Chevy at 2-3X the price when they will all take you to the grocery store, to your job or to school?  Is that worth it?  Only you can decide.  Maybe others opinions on what they decide for their own enjoyment,  values and financial situation are helpful, maybe not.

Edited March 19, 2022 by TeeRick

[mfs2k]

Don’t forget to factor in the upgrade to premium beverage package, better Wi-Fi and additional onboard credit you get with a suite.  If you were going to do those things anyway you need to consider that as part of your financial comparison. 
Also if you can afford it, sometimes you just have to go for it and don’t look back. That’s what we did for Beyond from Cape Liberty in October. 

[graphicguy]

If you look at it from a monetary standpoint, it’s important to do an apples to apples comparison. Sky Suites come with sizeable OBC (in our case, $600).  In addition, internet is included, and more importantly, it’s Celebrity’s top tier streaming service.  Plus, you get upgraded to the Premium Beverage package.

 

If none of that matters to you, you still get access to the Retreat Lounge, the private Retreat Pool, the Luminae (which may as well be considered a Specialty Restaurant), the Retreat Concierges…who take care of EVERYTHING for you, from getting your laundry done, to booking your specialty dining, to booking your excursions, to taking care of internet woes, to taking care of any billing snafus.

 

As others have said, if the extra service isn’t important, maybe all the “for fee” upgrades they include will be.

 

Your money.  If it’s worth it is up to you.

 

To us, it is.  And once we do the financial compare and contrast, it’s nowhere near 2X-3X the cost of another category.

[TennesseeNationVol]

6 hours ago, graphicguy said:

If you look at it from a monetary standpoint, it’s important to do an apples to apples comparison. Sky Suites come with sizeable OBC (in our case, $600).  In addition, internet is included, and more importantly, it’s Celebrity’s top tier streaming service.  Plus, you get upgraded to the Premium Beverage package.

 

If none of that matters to you, you still get access to the Retreat Lounge, the private Retreat Pool, the Luminae (which may as well be considered a Specialty Restaurant), the Retreat Concierges…who take care of EVERYTHING for you, from getting your laundry done, to booking your specialty dining, to booking your excursions, to taking care of internet woes, to taking care of any billing snafus.

 

As others have said, if the extra service isn’t important, maybe all the “for fee” upgrades they include will be.

 

Your money.  If it’s worth it is up to you.

 

To us, it is.  And once we do the financial compare and contrast, it’s nowhere near 2X-3X the cost of another category.

Exactly.  And to us, it is. -H