Pearl to Alaska Mini vs. Penthouse Suite

[Cooks_Bay]

Hello,

 

First off I would like to say what a great site this is! I have been a lurker here for a month now and gained alot of information while planning our first cruise. Having researched Alaska cruises I narrowed the choices to NCL Pearl out of Seattle and RCCL Sarenade of the Seas from Vancouver. We are a family of 4. My wife and I in our late 40's with two children ages 11 and 7. I find the "freestyle" concept attractive (especially when traveling with children).

 

I have been looking at both AB Penthouse (starboard, so not below the gym), and AF Minisuite. I'm interested in any opinions you might be able to offer. I was thinking that the AB might be really nice since it offers a seperate small bedroom for the kids. I'm thinking they might really enjoy having their own little space as well, (though as an adult I would find it claustrophobic). One thing I noticed in photos of the Pearl's AB's vs other NCL ships AB's is that the furniture doesn't look as comfortable. (Couch and chairs with wooden legs & arms). I don't mean to sound overly picky as they are beautiful cabins, and the extra service would be nice. Just wondering about the comfort factor. If anyone has experience/opinions with these (or photos to share) I would really appreciate it

[mpk218]

The difference between the AB and the AF are night and day. If you spend any real time in your cabin get the AB.

The AF's are a bit tight for 2+2 . Plus that extra bathroom really comes in handy when you have 4.

 

mpk

 

P.S. click on my e-mail below and Ill send you some pics.

[retiredonthesea]

What's so nice about AB you also have a full bath in your own private bedroom. It has whirlpool tub and a seperate shower. The kids bedroom has it's own TV and bath. We just loved this penthouse and didn't even have kids in with us. Our son's and their families had adjoining rooms. (minisuite) We had GD's over a couple nights so the parents could have a few nights out with out worrying about bringing the girls back to their cabin.

 

The best part is you will have full Butler and Concierge service a wonderful perk!:D I would absolutely take the AB. Yes the furniture was comfortable enough to sit and enjoy TV or have a drink. Plus a very nice balcony.

 

Retiredonthesea

[CRUZIN TOM]

The seperate bedrooms for the kids is great, go for the suite.:)

[retiredonthesea]

Cooks Bay

 

By the way---BIG WELCOME to the boards!:D :D :D

[z man]

I was on the Pearl for 5/4/08 cruise only 2 of us we had the mini suite on deck 11 af if you are traveling with kids go for the extra dough and do the penthouse its really beautiful. You will love Alaska just not enough time to see it all that is why I will be going back. Enjoy!

[CC Help Michell]

Hi, and welcome to the boards. :) I agree with the above posters -- if it's do-able in your budget, there is no contest between the AB and a mini (which is basically what other lines call a "deluxe balcony"), particularly for a family of 4. Separate bedrooms, breakfast and lunch at Cagney's, concierge, butler, priority ship departures, and a host of other advantages under Freestyle 2.0 (check the "Suite" section at this link -- http://www.ncl.com/nclweb/cruiser/cmsPages.html?pageId=F2#freestyle2.0)

 

For Alaska, since you are also considering a RCI ship, I would also compare the itineraries of the 2 voyages. The Alaska Ports of Call board here at Cruise Critic (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=55) has a lot of great information on the various itinerary options in Alaska.

 

Have fun making your choice, and enjoy CC!

[Cooks_Bay]

Thanks for all of your responses!

[freestylecruizer]

What we did was book the AF on our Alaska, and put our "kids" in a category K on deck 4. When I say "kids" they are in their 20s. So they didn't want much to do with us, and us with them if you know what I mean.

 

I agree the AB (if you can afford it) is a better alternative with the separate rooms, etc. Plus the perks of the butler will spoil you and your kids for ever (we really missed not having the conceirge in the AF anymore).

[odblnt]

The only AB's I'd caution you against is the ones on the port side under the fitness center. While you would get a better view of Glacier Bay, unless you can get the one all the way forward (11506) or the one farthest aft (11530), the noise factor can be significant.

 

Now the one's on the starboard side under the library are much quieter.

[reedski'scruise]

:) We just got off the Pearl on Sunday. We had an AB penthouse (11518)and 4 mini suites on the aft side. I think the gym was above us but it didn't bother us at all. Go for the penthouse if you can as it has so much more room in it. The small bedroom sleeps 3 children and has it's own bathroom and TV. The mini suites were pretty crowded in my opinion. Hope this helps.

Lanie Limjoco was our butler and she was the best!! She is on leave for a few months now but will be back.

Our room stewards weren't so good but you can't have it all! The concierge only showed up on the last day even though she knew there was a problem with the Juneau sportfishing excursion. If you are any kind of fisherman you won't enjoy this excursion at all.

All in all we had a great time!:)

[Fishbait17]

.... the Juneau sportfishing excursion. If you are any kind of fisherman you won't enjoy this excursion at all.

All in all we had a great time!:)

 

Please, tell me more about this excursion and why it is so bad. Thinking about booking it..... Have had some awful fishing excursions, so I know how bad they can get...

 

Robin

[reedski'scruise]

My husband and 2 sons plus my husbands cousin went on this excursion thinking they would be able to actually fish, meaning hold the pole, check the bait, etc. like you would normally do while fishing.

They were not allowed to touch the poles. The young kid that was supposed to be checking the bait only checked it every half hour or less so by the time it was checked the bait was long gone. They didn't even get a bite. The kid also didn't know how to cut bait.

They are all experienced fishermen so they knew things weren't being done properly.

Basically all it was was a trip in a too small boat to watch the whales which could have been done a whole lot cheaper that paying for a sport fishing trip. Maybe, if a person knew nothing about fishing it would be okay. The shore excursion person on the ship assured me that he had personally been on this excursion and found nothing wrong with it and actually was very rude about it. He stated that the description says you will not be able to hold your own pole so beware of this excursion is all I can say!

[mpk218]

Its a shame they didnt get any fish. But the type of fishing they were doing is trolling which involves the poles being mounted in holders becuase they are attached to downriggers. These have large weights that take the line and bait deep . You can not hold the pole while trolling like this, you would think you had a garbage can on the other end. When the fish bite the downriggers snap off and then you fight the fish .

I hope this clears up what was going and you feel a little less taken . Its always a drag to pay that kind of money and get skunked.

 

mpk

[z man]

wait till you get to ketchikan and go with capt. ken.

[milolii]

wait till you get to ketchikan and go with capt. ken.

 

 

More information on Captain Ken, please.

[z man]

http://www.ketchikanfishing.net