dleahy4444 Posted December 6, 2023 #1 Share Posted December 6, 2023 We are currently booked in a sunset veranda stateroom on the Ascent and I’m sure we will be very happy in it. I’ve read mixed reviews on the sky suites lately considering the increase in prices and decrease in services. Booking a sky suite outright would be impossible on our budget but a Move Up bid is a possibility. Is the sky suite experience worth bidding on, with a low to medium bid? Since it’s a new ship the minimums are still pretty pricey for my beer pockets and champagne taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Georgia_Peaches Posted December 6, 2023 #2 Share Posted December 6, 2023 I wouldn’t do it, but that’s just me. The extra space is nice and if you get a room with the bed facing the ocean, that’s nice too. But having done a regular veranda (porthole) and then an S1, both on Ascent… we found more value and enjoyment in the porthole. A sunset veranda is even better! We will book this category next time. This is just a personal preference. There was nothing wrong with the Retreat AT ALL. If your budget is tight, keep your current room category and save what you would have spent on the upgrade for something else…like a specialty dinner or two! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare PTC DAWG Posted December 6, 2023 #3 Share Posted December 6, 2023 I enjoy the extra elbow room a suite affords me, on any ship. Any extra amenities are just icing on the cake to me..you know your budget better than any of us. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mauidiver Posted December 6, 2023 #4 Share Posted December 6, 2023 That’s such an incredibly personal decision, but we’re also thinking along the same lines for our upcoming Edge cruise. For context, we absolutely adore the Sunset Veranda cabins and feel that aft cabins are the best for views on any ship. We are intrigued by the idea of putting in a move-up bid (if that’s an option) for a suite mostly for the easier boarding process and access to The Retreat. However, giving up that aft view is a tough one as we really love sitting on our balcony and watching the wake, and shore activity since ships often back into ports. Much of our decision to bid or not will honestly depend on how much the minimum bid is and the perceived trade-off for the move. I will predict that IF we bid, it’ll only be the minimum if it’s a relatively low starting bid. The aft cabins will likely attract high move-up bids from passengers wanting a true veranda, so I’ve heard the move up bids to suites from folks in sunset verandas are often accepted. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hasentreelake Posted December 6, 2023 #5 Share Posted December 6, 2023 9 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said: I wouldn’t do it, but that’s just me. The extra space is nice and if you get a room with the bed facing the ocean, that’s nice too. But having done a regular veranda (porthole) and then an S1, both on Ascent… we found more value and enjoyment in the porthole. A sunset veranda is even better! We will book this category next time. This is just a personal preference. There was nothing wrong with the Retreat AT ALL. If your budget is tight, keep your current room category and save what you would have spent on the upgrade for something else…like a specialty dinner or two! ^^ agree with this ^^ SV FTW Retreat Overrated IMO 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Tyler414 Posted December 6, 2023 #6 Share Posted December 6, 2023 I'm on a 10 day Ultimate Caribbean soon and have a Sunset Veranda booked. I booked this over 1.5 years ago when they had some good offers... I plan to try a move up to a suite. I have the opposite thought from Georgia_Peaches. I have lots of specialty dinning booked a cabana on two of the four sea days. My thought is to cancel all but three of the special dinning (Luminate replacing those) and to cancel one or both of my cabana (replacing with Retreat sun deck) I have only been in Sunset veranda's on E-class and love them, but for a 10 day cruise I think I would like the Retreat more. I still have not even had the opportunity to place a move up yet, so no clue on the pricing. My plan/idea may change depending on the price. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulh84 Posted December 6, 2023 #7 Share Posted December 6, 2023 Everyone has their own comfort level on price so I'm not sure my own really has any significance to you. That said, my own measure is usually to keep my all-in cost around $1000 night for a normal Caribbean 7 night cruise on E class in a Sky Suite. That's roughly what we're comfortable paying at beach resorts. At this point there aren't many acceptable options to us that come in much under that, especially in the winter when we want to travel to those type of places. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jelayne Posted December 6, 2023 #8 Share Posted December 6, 2023 We like the specialty restaurants on E class better than Luminae. We find the menu in Luminae limited and heavy on seafood, which I can't eat. After being in SS on E class ships for 6 cruises we just downgraded from a SS to a SV for a TP and our next cruise is also in a SV. We don't find the value in SS that we did previously. The elimination of the butler changed the feel from special to no different than a veranda cabin. DH doesn't use the Sun Deck and I spend about 3 hrs there in a 7 night sailing, we end up dining many nights in a specialty or one of the 4 MDRs. 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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