DIAMOND CABINS-BALCONY vs MINI-SUITE

[platterb]

Need help in making cabin choice. Trying to decide between a Mini-Suite cabin or a balcony on Caribe Deck. If I understand correctly, the actual balcony cabin size is the same regardless, but the balconies themselves on the Caribe are much larger than the other decks. I do understand that because the Caribe balconies are larger, they are partially uncovered. On the otherhand, the Mini-Suite cabins are much larger but they have the smaller balconies.

 

Choice was alot easier on NCL; the cabins and balconies are both larger in the mini-suites vs the balconies.

 

Any comments are certainly welcomed.

[kat9661]

Booked our first Princess cruise a few weeks ago and struggled with the same question. Had booked a minisuite on the Emerald deck for our cruise to Hawaii on the Diamond but yesterday found an aft Cat BB balcony available on the Caribe deck which I switched to. We have had that type of cabin before and love the view of the wake, larger balcony vs larger room is a better fit for us and we are saving about close to 800.00 with the change. Good luck with your decision!

[Mike A]

With regard to the Mini-Suite balconies compared to Caribe Deck standard,there has been a great deal of discussion regarding the size of the Mini-Suite Balcony. Many have stated that the Caribe balconies are larger than the Mini's yet I have also read that here that both are 9 x 9.5. The Caribe balconies are partially covered. The Dolphin Deck Mini balconies are uncovered and the Emerald Deck Mini balconies are fully covered. I will be in a Dolphin Mini-Suite, on the Diamond 9/9. I will attempt to measure the balcony to try and end the confusion.

[Toto2Kansas]

One important question you need to ask yourself is which is more important to you, the balcony size or the actual cabin size and layout. If you like to have a sitting area, full sized tub and lots of storage space with the little perks that come with a mini, then definitely go with the mini.

 

If you spend most of yoru time on the balcony, don't mind the thinner mattress and no sitting area and smaller shower only in the balcony cabins, then that would be your choice.

[MikieF]

We were in a minisuite on Dolphin deck for our Sydney to SFO trip last April. The balcony was large enough to easily accomodate a lounger which our cabin steward was able to confiscate for us early in the cruise. Even with the lounger there was plenty of room for the other two chairs and small table on the balcony For us the minisuite worked best for a long (28 day) cruise.

[platterb]

Large cabin or large balcony. Decisions..Decisions..Decisions. Thanks for your input. Too bad that I would like both.

[critterchick]

You get a nice large balcony with the minisuite with room for lots of furniture, and the interior space of the cabin is significantly larger than that of the standard balcony cabin. I'd book the mini hands down unless the price difference is beyond your means.

 

I think instead of size, consider uncovered (Dolphin minis), fully covered (Emerald minis and some BB cabins on the stern of the ship) or partly covered (Caribe standard balcony). Some people hate the thought that people can see them from above while they're on their balconies - we've never noticed anybody staring at us - the sea is a lot more attractive.

[skarletohara]

The balcony sizes for a Caribe regular room with balcony vs. a Mini-suite

on Dolphin or Emerald deck with balcony, the balconies are identical in size.

 

I've had all of these categories, and trust me, you can either get a regular

size room with a nice deep balcony (Caribe) or a way larger room

on Dolphin with an exact size balcony as Caribe deck. The only difference

is Caribe deck is half-covered and half exposed. As stated before,

the Dolphin deck minis are FULLY exposed. The Emerald deck mini's

are completely covered. The two exceptions are E728 and E731 which have NEARLY double the space of all other mini suite balconies.

 

The reason some people think Caribe balconies are bigger than Dolphin

is??? Basically the regular size balconies for regular cabins on

Aloha, Baja and Lido decks are 9x5 on the Diamond. On the Caribe

deck they're 9x9 feet 11 inches, and the same goes for the Dolphin

decks too.

 

The ship is in a wedding cake tiered design (if that helps)

 

I have personally stayed in the above referenced cabins and do know

for a fact that the Caribe balconies are not any bigger than the Dolphin

balconies.

[jlp20]

Need help in making cabin choice. Trying to decide between a Mini-Suite cabin or a balcony on Caribe Deck..... On the otherhand, the Mini-Suite cabins are much larger but they have the smaller balconies.

 

Choice was alot easier on NCL; the cabins and balconies are both larger in the mini-suites vs the balconies.

 

Any comments are certainly welcomed.

 

 

Caribe balconies are 50% deeper than other decks. The deck above covers the first 3 feet. There are Minis on Caribe, and their balconies are huge.

[platterb]

The reason some people think Caribe balconies are bigger than Dolphin

is??? Basically the regular size balconies for regular cabins on

Aloha, Baja and Lido decks are 9x5 on the Diamond. On the Caribe

deck they're 9x9 feet 11 inches, and the same goes for the Dolphin

decks too.

 

You're a life savor. Decision now becomes very easy. Mini-Suite it is.

 

Thank you all

[mncruizr]

The only thing I would add is that if you are going to alaska the Aloha might be a better choice even though it is small. We went there a month ago and due to the rain there were few if any people on their balconies below us. Ours (aloha) was covered and we spent many dry hours enjoying the scenery while sipping coffee and other fun beverages!

 

If you are going to the Mexican Riviera, then I think you've already made the right choice.

[mclaire]

by fully covered are we talking private or are we talking absolutely no sun? I thought we'd be happy in a mini-suite on emerald deck, but we do enjoy some sun. thanks for your help.