Golden Princess C752 vs. E728 or E729

[goat rancher]

Any big difference in size between these balconies, or in comfort (shielded from elements/excess wind?)

The C752 is an AFT cabin to port side, in the BB class (there is a matching cabin on the other side, but I don't recall the cabin #)

The E728 and E729 are the last cabins port and starboard in the minisuite class.........

They all are shown to have bigger than average balconies and all are shown to be completely covered, yet I have read complaints about the E cabins' balconies being too windy...to the point of being unusable according to one person.......

I am really trying to decide between these, and having a difficult time....the price difference from what I can research is only about $300 and with the E cabins, of course, you are getting the extra benefit of more cabin space and luxury, however if the balcony is "unliveable" then perhaps the C cabin (which is a regular balcony room) would be better.

Also, for anyone who has cruised to Hawaii and back, does it REALLY make any difference whether you are on the port or the starboard side?? We would be passing the volcanos with starboard facing them, but other than that I can't see a big difference since most of the cruising is at night....

Thanks.......

[serene56]

the other side is C753

 

Which is what we had on the CB.

 

It felt almost private as we had to lean way over the side to see into the balcony next door.

 

Only one neighbor on one side.

 

Dont have to worry about being on the wrong side of the ship as youwill be able to see both sides.

 

Balcony is half covered half opened. Got sun as long as we sat by the rail.

 

$300 is a lot of money and would buy me a heli lift into a valcono if I was doing hawaii.

[goat rancher]

Thanks:)........

I am an aft fanatic (had wraparound ones TWICE on Carnival) and I guess it is just time to sit down with DH and decide do we need the extra space of a minisuite ( the E728 or E729) or do we want to save the $300 or so and get one of the BB Caribe deck aft corners.......decisions, decisions :)

[serene56]

Thanks:)........

I am an aft fanatic (had wraparound ones TWICE on Carnival) and I guess it is just time to sit down with DH and decide do we need the extra space of a minisuite ( the E728 or E729) or do we want to save the $300 or so and get one of the BB Caribe deck aft corners.......decisions, decisions :)

 

 

book the caribe deck then decide- you can always change it. But they go quickly.

[CruiseNut7]

My vote is for the mini-suite ...... I'll take a mini over a balcony any day!

 

We were in E729 on the Golden last September when we sailed the British Isles. Just having the extra room in the cabin of a mini for a longer cruise is wonderful (and there were only two of us). The balcony is twice as large and covered. I never noticed a wind issue - guess we didn't encounter any. The location is very nice too - private, quiet, no hallway traffic.

 

For any Grand class ship, I look for one of those last mini-suites on the Emerald Deck first - they're great. :) JMHO

[shawilson]

We were in E729 on Golden, April 22, SF to Mex Riv. Loved the balcony. Being able to see the wake is awesome. Loved the tub. Loved the second TV in the sitting area. I like to sleep in, and DH is an early riser. He would get up early and watch TV or sit out on the balcony, and I could snooze. If you are considering a mini, go for Emerald deck, if you can get E729, go for it. We did a "cabin crawl", with our roll call, where people were kind enough to let us tour their cabins. We had a mix of every cabin possible. Except for the "Grand Suite" (thanks JoAnn), I would prefer E729 over everything I saw. Not saying the insides aren't nice, they are very nice and roomy. Caribe balconies are the largest of the non mini and full suites, and are mostly covered, unless you go to the railing. There just isn't any place for people to sit inside the cabin, unless they sit on the bed. It does have 2 chairs though. The other things we loved about E729 was the great photo ops off the curved balcony, being able to look aft and sideways, and quick access to the Lido deck. It is kind of a trek to the casino. Maybe that is a good thing.

 

Hope you are happy with whatever option you choose!

[goat rancher]

Thanks.....

We grabbed E729 this week....were debating between ALL these cabins, but decided that we needed the extra inside room of a minisuite since our cruise is 2 weeks (roundtrip hawaii) and decided we'd rather not chance having too much noise if we were in E728 over Club Fusion's stage.........

[CruiseNut7]

Congratulations on booking E729 on the Golden - I am confident you won't be disappointed. :) As I mentioned, it's the first one I look for when I'm booking a Grand class mini - particularly for a sailing over 7 days.

 

HINT: Have Princess or your travel agent (whoever booked your sailing) mark you booking "NO UPGRADE" as you could feasibly be upgraded to the Dolphin Deck. There is a thread running now where this happened to another CC and they were so upset. When we sailed in E729, we made sure our TA had our booking noted NO UPGRADE.

 

Happy sailing!

[goat rancher]

..so is the upgrade something they force you to do???Why would they force you out of your cabin anyway....Is there some sort of priority system where someone can come in and say hey I want that cabin, get those other people out of it??

We didn't specifically say NO UPGRADE but we DIDN'T ask to be included in a program to upgrade either...In the other cruises we've taken, it never came into play and it just wasn't anything we even considered...I had no idea you could be moved around if you picked a given cabin....If that is true, then I guess next time I see my T.A. I will make sure there is a big statement for no upgrades....This T.A. is not as good as my old T.A. and whereas my old T.A. would know to mark "no upgrades" if that needed to be done, I don't know if this new T.A. would........

Thanks for the "heads up"....

[Reetz]

Congratulations on booking E729 on the Golden - I am confident you won't be disappointed. :) As I mentioned, it's the first one I look for when I'm booking a Grand class mini - particularly for a sailing over 7 days.

 

HINT: Have Princess or your travel agent (whoever booked your sailing) mark you booking "NO UPGRADE" as you could feasibly be upgraded to the Dolphin Deck. There is a thread running now where this happened to another CC and they were so upset. When we sailed in E729, we made sure our TA had our booking noted NO UPGRADE.

 

Happy sailing!

Thanks for your review Diane. We are booked in E729 roundtrip to Hawaii on Oct 24, 2012. I took your hint and had our TA mark it NO UPGRADE.....Thanks for that huge tip. I specifically asked for this cabin and would have been very upset to be upgraded to the Dolphin Deck. We have been in those mini's 3 times now and really wanted E729 due to what we have read on CC...........