JS or Superior Ocean - MOS

[poohs4me]

I am trying to decide whether I should spring for the extra $800 for a JS or just be content with the Superior Ocean view. This is for a 4 day cruise. If we were on the ship longer, I would definately go to the JS. Additional information, we have never sailed RCCL, but have sailed other lines.

[elleluv]

Which MOS are you asking about??? I'm assuming maybe either Monarch or Majesty since you're referring to a 4 night cruise???

[Fury1995]

I am trying to decide whether I should spring for the extra $800 for a JS or just be content with the Superior Ocean view. This is for a 4 day cruise. If we were on the ship longer, I would definately go to the JS. Additional information, we have never sailed RCCL, but have sailed other lines.

 

I am assuming Majesty of the Seas, right? Is this going to be a "I need to get away" Bahamas cruise? If it were me, $800 is alot of money to switch to a JS for just a 4 nighter. If it were a 7 night or even a 6 night cruise that might be different. Do you have to have a balcony?

[PHXscuba]

Poohs4me:

(Assuming you mean Majesty/Monarch)

We are doing the 4-day Majesty cruise in April. I debated long and hard about JS vs. SOV, being that it is our 15th anniversary:) .

We finally decided to just take the SOV, for a few reasons, which may or may not matter in your situation:

1. We had an inside on our first cruise, so this will already seem like a big step up.

2. I'm afraid if I go balcony, I'll never go back (and that could get expensive if we take the 4 kids next time)

3. The $800 we are saving means that I will not feel at all guilty about ANY shore excursions I book: so far I've looked at 2 scuba outings, Segway tour, and dolphin encounters (my biggest problem fitting it all in is time!)

4. With a port-each-day itinerary and the Majesty being newly reno'ed, I really don't see us spending a lot of time cooped up in our cabin.

 

So there's my story, hope some of these comments help the pro/con debate. That being said, if the price of a JS dropped A LOT before April, I might be tempted to upgrade!

PHXscuba

"You can't have everything -- besides, where would you put it all?":D

[poohs4me]

Sorry I am still learning the acronyms. I meant Majesty of the Seas. We do not have to have a balcony, but since I know very little about this particular ship I wanted to make sure that there is not something signficantly wrong with an SOV.

 

PHXScuba which April cruise are you on, we might be on the same one.

[Fury1995]

Sorry I am still learning the acronyms. I meant Majesty of the Seas. We do not have to have a balcony, but since I know very little about this particular ship I wanted to make sure that there is not something signficantly wrong with an SOV.

 

PHXScuba which April cruise are you on, we might be on the same one.

 

 

Majesty, Monarch, and Sovereign are three unique ships in the fleet (Soveriegn class) and also the three oldest aside from Empress, which also has a loyal following.

 

With that said, one of the biggest mistakes I see people make (when switching from another cruiseline to Royal Caribbean) is booking one of these three ships to get a feel for RCCL and then comparing this class ship to what they're used to. Try to keep that in mind while onboard.

 

That's not to say there is anything wrong with the Majesty, I love the both the Majesty and Soveriegn. Done both and loved both cruises, but they are what they are.... different from the rest of Royal's current fleet design. There isn't a Royal Promonade (in the usual sense) or specialty restaurants (like Chops and Portifinos) and alot less balconies.

 

Still, they are beautiful (and recently refurbished) large cruise ships with the classic Royal Caribbean "look", but Royal Caribbean has "banished" them to the Bahamas for short cruises which I think is a shame.

 

Most loyal Royal die hard cruisers who have sailed these ships would probrably do week long itineraries on any of the Soveriegn class ships. I know I would.

[FitzLA]

I was having the same issue as you. I wasn't sure weather to book an OV, SOV or JS. For such a short cruise, I wan't sure I wanted to spend the money, but I am spoiled and like my balconies. We ended up doing an SOV guarantee and were upgraded to a JS. That worked our perfect as I got what I wanted and didn't have to pay anywhere near what they wanted for it. I would check to see if they have SOV guarantee and see what happens. Good luck!

[Fury1995]

Fitz, I just looked at your signature and then re-read my post.:eek: I spelled *it* with an "s". ooops!:D

[CruisinNole]

My DH and I sailed twice on the Majesty last year and had an SOV. We usually book balcony cabins but the fare for the SOV was so low, we decided to give it a try. We had no complaints at all. We were surprised that we didn't miss the balcony. I would definitely book a balcony cabin for a longer cruise.

[PHXscuba]

Poohs4me:

We are on the Apr. 23 sailing of the Majesty. ... less than 3 months now!

The biggest knock I've heard about the rooms on the Majesty (and others in her class) is size, of course. At 157 sq ft., the SOV is still pretty small. JS is decently bigger, but I just couldn't justify paying almost double. I think being on deck 9 will be a nice place to be in terms of the view.

Think of it like a guest room in someone's house, where you have limited space, not just like your master bedroom at home. I'm going on the cruise for the zillion other square feet on the ship!

-- p.s. I noticed the price on my sailing dropped today for inside/oceanview. Keep checking to see if the higher categories drop.

PHXscuba

"You can't have everything -- besides, where would you put it all?"

[FitzLA]

Fitz, I just looked at your signature and then re-read my post.:eek: I spelled *it* with an "s". ooops!:D

 

ROFL! You are too funny! I think you are the 1st person to notice that. I used to spell it with an 's' as well until I was corrected by the kind people on CC. I thought I would help out and pass on the knowledge. lol. Happy cruising!

[poohs4me]

Thank you all for your opinions. I would book a Guarantee room if it was available, but no such luck yet.

 

PHXScuba - We may be on your cruise. We are still trying to decide.

[leoandhugh]

as a couple of previous posters have already pointed out, at 157sq ft the SOV cabins on those 3 ships are just about the smallest in RCCLs inventory if you are prepared for that limitation for just 4 days, you should have a good cruise. But since this is your first cruise with RCCL, please do not judge the whole fleet by these ships, which are well maintained but the oldest and therefore relegated to short party -type cruises. We have tha Monarch OTS here doing 3 and 4 day trips out of Los Angeles and they have a very large, loyal following.:)