Family Cabins

[Sunseeker20]

Hello!

 

I have not sailed with Celebrity yet, but I'm looking for information on cabins that fit 5 people. Does Celebrity have these? I know sometimes people with a larger family will book connecting rooms but I feel like the cost can be more that way. We just sailed on Royal Caribbean in a balcony room and it worked great. Any information is helpful!

[WestLakeGirl]

Five adults? Or two adults and three children?

[Sunseeker20]

2 adults and 3 kids!

[wrk2cruise]

Yes the Family Veranda category is marketed for 5 people.  You have to call to book.  They are not available for booking on the website.

[mahdnc]

3 hours ago, Sunseeker20 said:

2 adults and 3 kids!

 

Celebrity has 2 types of Family Veranda (FV) cabins that can sleep 5.  Celebrity recently changed the names of the categories for their cabins.  They are now designated as Ultra Deluxe Veranda cabins (UV) however it is tough for me to get used to the new name.

 

There are two different FV designs (types): one on the Millennium class ships (Millennium, Infinity, Summit, and Constellation) and another design on the Solstice class ships (Solstice, Equinox, Eclipse, and Reflection).  I have booked my family of 4 in these FV cabins 10 times (4x Millennium class and 6x Solstice class).

 

Each Millennium class ship has 12 FV cabins and they are all located at the stern.  Their claim to fame is their large magnificent balconies.  The FV comes with a king size bed and two sofa beds and can definitely sleep 4.  If the kids are small, it is possible to sleep 5 in one of the two sofa beds. Although the size specification of the FV cabin is large, it has a long and skinny shape and there is no room to place a rollaway bed without blocking the bathroom door or the main cabin door.  The bottom line is that it Is difficult for me to recommend the cabins for 5 people.

 

There are only 4 FV cabins on each of the Solstice class ships (except Silhouette).  These cabins are all the way forward and they occupy the corners of the ship on two decks.  The best thing about them is that they are very large and furnished to sleep 5 with no question.  There is a separate master bedroom with a king size bed.  There is a second bedroom with a pair of bunk beds.  The fifth person can sleep on the couch in the main living area.  The room is large enough that a roll away bed can be conveniently placed without difficulty.  This cabin I can easily recommend for a family of 5.  I have included a sketch of an FV that we had aboard Reflection (note that the FV cabins are furnished differently on each Solstice class ship).

 

Both types of FVs come with only one bathroom and it is of the standard size and design. 

 

Edited June 17, 2023 by mahdnc

[tfg]

6 hours ago, wrk2cruise said:

Yes the Family Veranda category is marketed for 5 people.  You have to call to book.  They are not available for booking on the website.

I have booked fv on line before on constellation 

[Bullswood]

Yes, I booked one of these on Solstice online recently for 3 of us (with the larger Deck 8 veranda). However on further consideration I reckoned my wife is more likely to get sea sick at the very front and there are also reports of docking noise early morning, so moved to better located 2x adjoining Concierge Veranda midships as offered at an almost identical total price.  

[mahdnc]

When FVs are first released for booking, they require a minimum of five to book. Celebrity's computer reservation system cannot handle putting five in any single cabin and so it has to be done manually by Miami (or wherever it is done) which is why you have to call. Even the Future Cruises consultants cannot book them without "calling" it in. 

 

At some point later, the requirement for five passengers is removed and any unsold FVs can then be booked online. My wife and I sailed on an FV by ourselves aboard Constellation (14 night Oct 22 Transatlantic) and I was able to book it through Celebrity's website six months in advance. 

 

Constellation FV 8166 balcony. The 6 FVs on the extreme corner of the ship have this balcony size and shape.  The adjacent, "non-corner", FV balconies are smaller. 

 

Constellation FV king size bed

 

Constellation FV 8166 sofa beds. Sofa on the left (does not fold out) converts into a bed for one person. Sofa on the right folds out to accommodate up to two small children. When the sofa is folded out, nearly all the floor space between the two sofas is occupied. 

Edited June 17, 2023 by mahdnc

[mahdnc]

@Sunseeker20, here are some photos of the Solstice class FV cabins.  These cabins are on Solstice, Equinox, Eclipse, and Reflection. 

 

Silhouette used to have them, but her 4 FV cabins were converted into suites in 2020.  They used to be called Sunset Suites, but I believe they are now named Horizon Suites.  Although they are rated for sleeping 4, the 2nd bedroom has been converted into a walk in closet that now connects with the master bedroom.  What a pity.

 

Unfortunately the FVs on the 4 remaining ships are furnished differently.  Solstice (the oldest Solstice class ship) has the fewest amount of furniture which meant a lot of space went to waste.  It was as if the designers furnished it like it was a regular size stateroom.  For example, there was no dining room table in there.  By the time Celebrity got around to building Reflection (the newest Solstice class ship), they furnished her properly including adding some built in furniture and they got it right.  Eclipse is furnished better than Solstice (it has a dining room table) but not as well as Reflection (Eclipse FVs don't have the built in furniture under the two windows).  I have not been in an Equinox FV but I suspect that it is furnished more along the lines of Solstice. 

 

Reflection FV 8107, Jan 2019: Here is the massive living room area.  The sofa against the wall on the left can be made up into a bed for one adult.  Our 6 ft adult son loved sleeping on it so he could watch movies in the evening while eating a room service snack.  Although there are 3 rooms, there is only one television and it is located near the desk in this photo.

 

Reflection FV 8107, Jan 2019: There is a small dining table near the balcony door which comes in handy for in-cabin dining.  My family liked to use it for playing games (e.g. cards).  My daughter like to use it to do her sketches and drawings.

 

Reflection FV 8107, Jan 2019: master bedroom.  The two large windows and the glass balcony door let in a lot of light and kept the cabin bright.  Sometimes it was necessary to draw the shades on the windows to keep direct sunlight from overheating the cabin.

 

Reflection FV 8107, Jan 2019: although the Solstice class FVs are blessed with a lot of space to sleep up to five people, it only had one bathroom--and it was the same size that you found in a regular non-suite stateroom.   This is one of the drawbacks to the FV design.

 

Reflection FV 8107, Jan 2019: This is the small second bedroom with two bunk beds--each with their own reading light--and a clothes closet.  No window.

 

Reflection FV 8107, Jan 2019: this is the lower bunk bed that our adult daughter liked to use.  Unlike the top bunk, the lower bunk bed does not fold into the wall.

 

Solstice FV 8107, Dec 2019: Here is what the second bedroom looks like with the upper bunk bed folded out.

 

Solstice FV 8107, Christmas Eve 2019: the balcony and windows gave the FV views from two different directions.  Here is what the Tasman Sea looks like.  The balcony had an area (to the extreme right in the photo) that was very sheltered and was nice to use on rainy or windy days.

 

Solstice FV 8107, Christmas Day 2019: The FV balconies on Deck 8 (shown) are actually larger (longer) than the average balcony.  On the other hand Deck 7 FVs on the Solstice class ships are smaller (shorter) than the average balcony.  The balcony divider in the background can be opened up to the adjacent balcony.

 

Solstice FV 8107, Dec 29 2019: the two windows that face the front of the ship give very nice views.  This is the early morning view as we were arriving at our tender port of Akaroa, New Zealand.

 

Solstice FV 8107, Dec 2019: The FV cabins can be booked with the adjacent outside cabin (8105 in this photo) to make them connecting cabins.  The connection is done through the shared vestibule which has a single door to the public hallway.  The outside cabin gives you an additional king size bed (or it can be split apart into two singles and an extra bathroom.

 

Reflection FV 8107, Jan 2019: This photo makes two things more readily apparent about the balcony for 8107.  First you can see how the balcony is wider than the average balcony.  Second, you can see the bridge wing that extends above the 8107.  It does obstruct the overhead view somewhat.

Edited June 17, 2023 by mahdnc

[Sunseeker20]

15 hours ago, mahdnc said:

 

Celebrity has 2 types of Family Veranda (FV) cabins that can sleep 5.  Celebrity recently changed the names of the categories for their cabins.  They are now designated as Ultra Deluxe Veranda cabins (UV) however it is tough for me to get used to the new name.

 

There are two different FV designs (types): one on the Millennium class ships (Millennium, Infinity, Summit, and Constellation) and another design on the Solstice class ships (Solstice, Equinox, Eclipse, and Reflection).  I have booked my family of 4 in these FV cabins 10 times (4x Millennium class and 6x Solstice class).

 

Each Millennium class ship has 12 FV cabins and they are all located at the stern.  Their claim to fame is their large magnificent balconies.  The FV comes with a king size bed and two sofa beds and can definitely sleep 4.  If the kids are small, it is possible to sleep 5 in one of the two sofa beds. Although the size specification of the FV cabin is large, it has a long and skinny shape and there is no room to place a rollaway bed without blocking the bathroom door or the main cabin door.  The bottom line is that it Is difficult for me to recommend the cabins for 5 people.

 

There are only 4 FV cabins on each of the Solstice class ships (except Silhouette).  These cabins are all the way forward and they occupy the corners of the ship on two decks.  The best thing about them is that they are very large and furnished to sleep 5 with no question.  There is a separate master bedroom with a king size bed.  There is a second bedroom with a pair of bunk beds.  The fifth person can sleep on the couch in the main living area.  The room is large enough that a roll away bed can be conveniently placed without difficulty.  This cabin I can easily recommend for a family of 5.  I have included a sketch of an FV that we had aboard Reflection (note that the FV cabins are furnished differently on each Solstice class ship).

 

Both types of FVs come with only one bathroom and it is of the standard size and design. 

 

That's so helpful! Thank you

[Sunseeker20]

Wow, thanks so much everyone!

All the information and pictures were incredibly helpful, I took a few screen shots so I can look back on the info when I need to. I have to say, I asked the same question in the boards for the other cruise lines and I got a lot of judgement and unhelpful suggestions,  you guys were the nicest by far!