New to Princess Cruises - room / deck help please

[Muffinz]

Hi - we are new to Princess cruises and are considering a cruise on Majestic Princess Feb 2023 from Sydney Australia (we're from New Zealand)

if we book this cruise We'll probably have loads of questions, but my initial question is - the cruise has mid-ship rooms available on these decks, so what deck is the best out of these 3?

11 (Baja)

12 (Aloha)

15 (Marina)

The available rooms they have on these floors are right by the lifts - so I'm not sure it that's a plus or if that will be noisy with people coming and going all the time

 

thanks in advance

Edited July 25, 2022 by Muffinz

[donswife]

I would choose Baja or Aloha, as Marina would be under the pool or buffet areas and might be noisier. And unless you are booking 2 rooms, I would try to avoid connecting cabins.

[caribill]

It is not noisier being near the lifts.

 

When there is noise, it is because people are talking too loud as they walk past your cabin and that can happen anywhere in the hallway, no matter how close or far you are to the lifts.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Baja, and don't worry about being right near the lifts. It's no noisier than any other cabin location.

[Muffinz]

thanks for the replies

 

my other main question is - do Princess cruises cater for lots of children?

reason I'm asking is we've only done 1 other cruise and that was on Celebrity Solstice in 2018 and although there were some children on the cruise they cater mainly for adults.... the last thing we want on a relaxing cruise holiday is to hear screaming kids running about the place.

[Bwana Tom]

10 minutes ago, Muffinz said:

thanks for the replies

 

my other main question is - do Princess cruises cater for lots of children?

reason I'm asking is we've only done 1 other cruise and that was on Celebrity Solstice in 2018 and although there were some children on the cruise they cater mainly for adults.... the last thing we want on a relaxing cruise holiday is to hear screaming kids running about the place.

Princess typically is dedicated to the older crowd. While we have had a few kids on some of our cruises, typically they are quite few. There are no water slides, surfing activities, go-carts, etc. so for the folks with a lot of young kids typically select Carnival, Norwegian, or one of the other cruise lines. But practically all of the Princess ships have children activities and children rec centers with a lot of activities for them to enjoy with their own age group. We've been on a lot of Princess cruises and we have never had a problem with noisy or wild, out of control children.

I also would say don't worry about the elevators. We have been close by on several of our cruises and have never noticed any noise associated with the elevators, nor the guess laundry facilities. In fact it is kind of nice because of the easy access if they are close by. 

Enjoy your cruise.

[Muffinz]

1 hour ago, Bwana Tom said:

Princess typically is dedicated to the older crowd. While we have had a few kids on some of our cruises, typically they are quite few. There are no water slides, surfing activities, go-carts, etc. so for the folks with a lot of young kids typically select Carnival, Norwegian, or one of the other cruise lines. But practically all of the Princess ships have children activities and children rec centers with a lot of activities for them to enjoy with their own age group. We've been on a lot of Princess cruises and we have never had a problem with noisy or wild, out of control children.

I also would say don't worry about the elevators. We have been close by on several of our cruises and have never noticed any noise associated with the elevators, nor the guess laundry facilities. In fact it is kind of nice because of the easy access if they are close by. 

Enjoy your cruise.

thanks for that.... we're still thinking about this cruise, as we're both a bit nervous with the whole covid thing....

there was a ship in Australia recently (not sure if it was Princess) that had quite a few covid cases on board.

[SargassoPirate]

24 minutes ago, Muffinz said:

thanks for that.... we're still thinking about this cruise, as we're both a bit nervous with the whole covid thing....

there was a ship in Australia recently (not sure if it was Princess) that had quite a few covid cases on board.

The worst thing about covid right now is the angst of trying to get a test within the timeframe mandated by the cruise lines.  If you are vaxxed and boosted you have little to worry about. Think about it.  The cruise lines require the vast majority of passengers to be vaccinated.  What other venue requires that?  A cruise ship is one of the safest places you can be and if you are truly concerned, wear an N95 the whole time you are on board - and in fact, if you are that concerned you should wear an N95 everywhere because the virus is here to stay in one mutation or another.

 

I put my trust in the vaccines and the therapeutics.

 

[Italy52]

We were on Marina and found it to be very noisy.  I am a relatively light sleeper and had lots of problems getting to sleep.

[Muffinz]

9 minutes ago, SargassoPirate said:

The worst thing about covid right now is the angst of trying to get a test within the timeframe mandated by the cruise lines.  If you are vaxxed and boosted you have little to worry about. Think about it.  The cruise lines require the vast majority of passengers to be vaccinated.  What other venue requires that?  A cruise ship is one of the safest places you can be and if you are truly concerned, wear an N95 the whole time you are on board - and in fact, if you are that concerned you should wear an N95 everywhere because the virus is here to stay in one mutation or another.

 

I put my trust in the vaccines and the therapeutics.

 

thanks - we're both double vaccinated and boosted, but still managed to get covid.... it wasn't that nice for me and I'd hate to get it again

[Sea Hag]

3 hours ago, Muffinz said:

thanks for the replies

 

my other main question is - do Princess cruises cater for lots of children?

reason I'm asking is we've only done 1 other cruise and that was on Celebrity Solstice in 2018 and although there were some children on the cruise they cater mainly for adults.... the last thing we want on a relaxing cruise holiday is to hear screaming kids running about the place.

I have never heard screaming kids running around on a Princess ship, but then again, I haven't heard this on other cruise lines either. I've actually seen few kids, screaming or not, on Princess ships. I wouldn't worry about this.

[caribill]

At holiday times (Xmas, NYE, spring break) and over a summer when school is out, there will be more children on Princess than at other times of the year.

 

During school times, there will be relatively few children on a Princess ship.

 

So unless February has a major school Australian holiday at the time you want to cruise, the ship will not have an overabundance of children.

[Muffinz]

36 minutes ago, caribill said:

At holiday times (Xmas, NYE, spring break) and over a summer when school is out, there will be more children on Princess than at other times of the year.

 

During school times, there will be relatively few children on a Princess ship.

 

So unless February has a major school Australian holiday at the time you want to cruise, the ship will not have an overabundance of children.

thanks - I hadn't factored that in

a quick google check tells me there are no school holidays in Australia until April so end of February into March should be ok

[CruizinSusan70]

4 hours ago, Muffinz said:

thanks for the replies

 

my other main question is - do Princess cruises cater for lots of children?

reason I'm asking is we've only done 1 other cruise and that was on Celebrity Solstice in 2018 and although there were some children on the cruise they cater mainly for adults.... the last thing we want on a relaxing cruise holiday is to hear screaming kids running about the place.

Princess and Celebrity cater to the same demographics, with HAL skewing just a bit older.   If you wish to avoid children then avoid the big four cruise lines, Carnival, Royal, NCL and MSC. 

[Muffinz]

So we’ve reserved a stateroom on deck 8 of majestic princess for the cruise leaving Sydney (Australia) in February 2022 stateroom E432

the room is ‘on hold’ at the moment while we make up our mind.

price was just over $4k (NZ) including beverage package and basic wi-fi

This is a very good price - considering our 2018 celebrity cruise was about $7k (NZ).

 

if we confirm it we will have 1001 questions

[SargassoPirate]

11 hours ago, Muffinz said:

thanks - we're both double vaccinated and boosted, but still managed to get covid.... it wasn't that nice for me and I'd hate to get it again

 

The vaccines do not prevent covid.   It's still possible to catch the virus, but your symptoms are less severe and are treatable with the therapeutics. 

 

Safe cruising.

[Muffinz]

Thanks - yes we’ve both had covid.... even though we’re both fully vaccinated.

 

I haven’t checked Princess Cruises covid policy, but I assume they’d want all passengers to be fully vaccinated?

[villauk]

You’ll find X and Princess are more similar than different.

[Daniel A]

1 hour ago, Muffinz said:

Thanks - yes we’ve both had covid.... even though we’re both fully vaccinated.

 

I haven’t checked Princess Cruises covid policy, but I assume they’d want all passengers to be fully vaccinated?

Per the Princess website:

"Princess Cruises continues to operate cruises that meet health authority requirements for sailing with at least 95% of guests fully vaccinated. These cruises are available for guests who have received their final dose of an Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approved or recognised COVID-19 vaccine, with the last dose being administered at least 14 days prior to the beginning of the cruise and can provide proof of vaccination. In addition, where local regulations allow, we’re managing a process for exemptions. Guests with medical contraindications to the vaccine and children under the age of 12 who are not fully vaccinated are permitted to travel, subject to pre-approval by Princess Cruises."

 

There are more questions and answers relating to sailings from Australia on Princess' website here:

 

CruiseHealth™ FAQ: Sailings from Australia - Princess Cruises

 

Keep in mind that February is a long way off and protocols are subject to change in response to then current conditions.  Just keep checking those FAQs up until final payment date and make your final decision then.  FWIW, I know several people who have contracted covid more than once and they have said the symptoms were less severe than the earlier infections.  Use common sense and practice good safety measures and you can decrease the chances of contracting covid again, but nothing short of living in a bubble will eliminate the risk. 

 

Make sure you purchase a good insurance policy, just in case.  I hope you enjoy your cruise.

Edited July 26, 2022 by Daniel A

[SargassoPirate]

55 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

Per the Princess website:

"Princess Cruises continues to operate cruises that meet health authority requirements for sailing with at least 95% of guests fully vaccinated. These cruises are available for guests who have received their final dose of an Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approved or recognised COVID-19 vaccine, with the last dose being administered at least 14 days prior to the beginning of the cruise and can provide proof of vaccination. In addition, where local regulations allow, we’re managing a process for exemptions. Guests with medical contraindications to the vaccine and children under the age of 12 who are not fully vaccinated are permitted to travel, subject to pre-approval by Princess Cruises."

 

There are more questions and answers relating to sailings from Australia on Princess' website here:

 

CruiseHealth™ FAQ: Sailings from Australia - Princess Cruises

 

Keep in mind that February is a long way off and protocols are subject to change in response to then current conditions.  Just keep checking those FAQs up until final payment date and make your final decision then.  FWIW, I know several people who have contracted covid more than once and they have said the symptoms were less severe than the earlier infections.  Use common sense and practice good safety measures and you can decrease the chances of contracting covid again, but nothing short of living in a bubble will eliminate the risk. 

 

Make sure you purchase a good insurance policy, just in case.  I hope you enjoy your cruise.

Well said, daniel. I trust the vaccines and therapeutics to keep me safe.  I'm not hesitant to book any future travel right now and will roll with the punches.

 

I got stuck in Australia in March 2020 when they started closing their internal borders and was put off a train halfway to Sydney.  Finally managed to get to Sydney and after several days there get a flight to the US as the airlines were shutting down.

 

Compared to that adventure, the rest is childs play 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

18 hours ago, Muffinz said:

thanks for the replies

 

my other main question is - do Princess cruises cater for lots of children?

reason I'm asking is we've only done 1 other cruise and that was on Celebrity Solstice in 2018 and although there were some children on the cruise they cater mainly for adults.... the last thing we want on a relaxing cruise holiday is to hear screaming kids running about the place.

We just got off a 21 day Med cruise on the Regal in July and there were over 400 children under 18 on each leg with a passenger load ranging from 2600 to 3500. But these were 7 day legs and its summertime; although one British person told me school was still in session in the UK. The question you may want to consider regarding your cruise, is it during some sort of school vacation period and is it a 7 day cruise? If so, then there might be more children on the cruise than there would normally be if school was in session. Just a thought ...

Edited July 26, 2022 by Ken the cruiser

[Nebr.cruiser]

I actually try to book cabins near the stairs/elevators because it's so much easier than endless walks down hallways.  So far, have not been bothered by noise from other passengers.  Also, on Princess, have never had a problem with children. There will be a few, more on school holidays, but nothing like some other lines.  Also, itinerary matters.

 

We are booked on the Feb. 24th Majestic Queensland cruise--so hoping it all happens!

 

[PTMary]

5 hours ago, Muffinz said:

So we’ve reserved a stateroom on deck 8 of majestic princess for the cruise leaving Sydney (Australia) in February 2022 stateroom E432

the room is ‘on hold’ at the moment while we make up our mind.

price was just over $4k (NZ) including beverage package and basic wi-fi

This is a very good price - considering our 2018 celebrity cruise was about $7k (NZ).

 

if we confirm it we will have 1001 questions

 

Keep in mind that deck 8 is directly above the promenade deck which has entertainment venues in certain areas such as the main theater or Vista Gaming Lounge which may have music and dancing late into the evening. Personally, we avoid any rooms above or under public areas as there is no way to know how those areas will be used during the cruise. 

 

Edit: I just noticed your room number. It is directly above the French bistro, which should not be a noise source. There may be some noise from the piazza, however. They sometimes have music and games there with an announcer using microphones and amplifiers. 

 

 

Edited July 26, 2022 by PTMary

[Daniel A]

1 hour ago, SargassoPirate said:

I got stuck in Australia in March 2020 when they started closing their internal borders and was put off a train halfway to Sydney. 

That's a long way from the Sargasso Sea, captain!  ☠️ 🦜

[caribill]

4 hours ago, Daniel A said:

Per the Princess website:

"Princess Cruises continues to operate cruises that meet health authority requirements for sailing with at least 95% of guests fully vaccinated.

 

For USA sailings (OP is on an Australia cruise), Princess allows up to 10% of passengers to not be vaccinated (subject to requirements of countries visited.)