Advice on Owners Suite

[Lane40]

Thats great. We always get an OS when we cruise. I love the extra space and benefits. Did you enjoy the cruise and ports? I haven't spoken to anyone who has done this particular cruise so would be interested in any feedback.

Which month did you cruise?;)

 

 

We really enjoyed the cruise and ports. The cruise departed Barcelona on June 23rd and finished in Istanbul on July 7th. We had overnights in Egypt and Israel and stayed both evenings on land. The entire cruise we booked private tours and never had any concern about missing the cruiseship.

 

Our only complaint about the cruise was the short period of time we were in some ports. If you have specific questions about the cruise, post it or can shoot me an email.

[Texed]

My daughter had the most forward ocean view cabin (right behind the Penthouse suite - owner's suite on O) on deck 6 of the Azamara Quest. It was not a good experience when we had 15 ft. seas. Here, we are talking about aft cabins on O, any similarities?

 

It's the same ship. :)

[jane02]

We really enjoyed the cruise and ports. The cruise departed Barcelona on June 23rd and finished in Istanbul on July 7th. We had overnights in Egypt and Israel and stayed both evenings on land. The entire cruise we booked private tours and never had any concern about missing the cruiseship.

 

Our only complaint about the cruise was the short period of time we were in some ports. If you have specific questions about the cruise, post it or can shoot me an email.

Did you find that time of the year very hot? I have been tossing up between June or October for this cruise and every single person I asked said to definately go in October as June would be far too hot especially in Egypt. I would be interested in how you found the heat.

Thanks

Kellie

[Lane40]

It was quite hot during our cruise, but since we live in southern Louisiana, it did not seem to bother us as much as it did with other passengers. It was what we expected in terms of the feeling being a "dry heat". No doubt that October would be more comfortable, but since we have educators in our family, we had no choice but to choose the summer to cruise this area.

 

The two items we were not prepared for in Egypt were the number of people in Cairo and the number of flies for our two days in Egypt. We still laugh that we are unsure which there was move of, people or flies...laughing

[hondorner]

Are there any "motion" issues with the VS or OS, other than vibration or noise from above? Is it smooth sailing in the aft cabins? What about in higher seas? My daughter had the most forward ocean view cabin (right behind the Penthouse suite - owner's suite on O) on deck 6 of the Azamara Quest. It was not a good experience when we had 15 ft. seas. Also because, on that ship, it could be an adjoining cabin, and A had done nothing to sound proof the doorway, there were noise issues with a loud family in the Penthouse, but noise problems can go both ways. Here, we are talking about aft cabins on O, any similarities?

 

The cabin your daughter had was either 6004 or 6005, and they are identical to the same cabins on Oceania, even to having the same cabin numbers. All five ships were part of the original eight ships built for Renaissance Cruise Lines, and the structure, probably even including soundproofing, is identical on all of the ships (three are owned by Princess). The experience in those cabins on any of the ships will be identical.

 

Just to clear up a minor differences between Oceania and Azamara, the Penthouse Suite on Deck 6 on Quest is a Vista Suite on Oceania. On Oceania, the 4 Vista Suites are in the forward corners on Deck 6 and Deck 7, while the same 4 suites are called Penthouse suites on Azamara. So, Vista Suites are only found at the forward end.

 

On Azamara, the aft corner suites on Deck 6 and 7 are called Royal Suites, and the aft corner suites on Deck 8 are called Penthouse Suites. On Oceania, all 6 of the aft corner suites (decks 6, 7 & 8) are called Owner's Suites. So, Owners Suites are only found at the aft end.

 

What Azamara calls Sky Suites on Quest and Journey, on deck 8, are called Penthouse Suites on the 3 Oceania ships. The Sky Suites on the Azamara ships are in a space originally occupied by standard veranda cabins much like decks 6 and 7; Azamara gutted them and created the Sky Suites, which are similar to the Oceania Penthouse suites, except there aren't as many of them. Only about 2/3 of Deck 8 are Sky Suites on A, while almost all of Deck 8 consists of Penthouse Suites on O's ships. One can see what the original deck plans were like on Journey and Quest by looking at deck 8 on Royal Princess, which has not been modified.

 

The "ride" will be rougher the further forward one goes, and the Vista Suites will also be quite windy when the ship is in motion. We have not sailed in the Vista Suites, but we briefly considered the standard veranda cabins on the front end, between the Vista suites. However, after consulting with friends who had one of those cabins during their Amazon cruise, we decided we would rather be in the middle or the back. They were rarely able to enjoy their balconies while under way.

 

The Owners suites at the aft end should be a little more comfortable. There may be vibration from the propellers, and there may be some motion from pitching, although not as much as the forward end. At least I hope there will be a little less motion, as we are booked into one of the aft veranda cabins between the Owners Suites next year (what Azamara calls Sunset Verandas).

 

If motion, noise or vibration is an issue, you will always be better off the closer to midships and the lower in the ship you can get. Those cruise lines which have moved their most expensive suites to the center of the ship are pretty smart.

[DaveFr]

Just to clear up a minor differences between Oceania and Azamara, the Penthouse Suite on Deck 6 on Quest is a Vista Suite on Oceania. On Oceania, the 4 Vista Suites are in the forward corners on Deck 6 and Deck 7, while the same 4 suites are called Penthouse suites on Azamara. So, Vista Suites are only found at the forward end.

 

On Azamara, the aft corner suites on Deck 6 and 7 are called Royal Suites, and the aft corner suites on Deck 8 are called Penthouse Suites. On Oceania, all 6 of the aft corner suites (decks 6, 7 & 8) are called Owner's Suites. So, Owners Suites are only found at the aft end.

 

Don,

 

Actually, the four forward corner suites on Azamara are called Royal Suites, while the six aft corner suites on Azamara are called Penthouse Suites. So Vista Suite on Oceania = Royal Suite on Azamara and Owner's Suite on Oceania = Penthouse Suite on Azamara.

 

Dave

[SunDapple]

The cabin your daughter had was either 6004 or 6005, and they are identical to the same cabins on Oceania, even to having the same cabin numbers. All five ships were part of the original eight ships built for Renaissance Cruise Lines, and the structure, probably even including soundproofing, is identical on all of the ships (three are owned by Princess). The experience in those cabins on any of the ships will be identical.

 

The "ride" will be rougher the further forward one goes, and the Vista Suites will also be quite windy when the ship is in motion. We have not sailed in the Vista Suites, but we briefly considered the standard veranda cabins on the front end, between the Vista suites. However, after consulting with friends who had one of those cabins during their Amazon cruise, we decided we would rather be in the middle or the back. They were rarely able to enjoy their balconies while under way.

 

The Owners suites at the aft end should be a little more comfortable. There may be vibration from the propellers, and there may be some motion from pitching, although not as much as the forward end. At least I hope there will be a little less motion, as we are booked into one of the aft veranda cabins between the Owners Suites next year (what Azamara calls Sunset Verandas).

 

If motion, noise or vibration is an issue, you will always be better off the closer to midships and the lower in the ship you can get. Those cruise lines which have moved their most expensive suites to the center of the ship are pretty smart.

 

Thank you.

I knew that they were all R ships. I've been on the Tahitian Princess twice, and the ship is why we chose the Azamara Quest. The R ships are the perfect size for us.

You have answered my question re: pitch and roll and added in the wind factor which I never thought about. We will never let any member of our family sail in 6005 again. I guess those that have sailed in the corner suites on O have not had problems, which is good to know, so it is left to just luck of the draw on your neighbors, as in most things in life. Thanks again.

[CintiPam]

The Owners suites at the aft end should be a little more comfortable. There may be vibration from the propellers, and there may be some motion from pitching, although not as much as the forward end. At least I hope there will be a little less motion, as we are booked into one of the aft veranda cabins between the Owners Suites next year (what Azamara calls Sunset Verandas).

 

If motion, noise or vibration is an issue, you will always be better off the closer to midships and the lower in the ship you can get. Those cruise lines which have moved their most expensive suites to the center of the ship are pretty smart.

 

Midships for me!

 

I was so vibration-sensitive last fall on Nautica that I moved from the lovely central table for two in the Grand Dining Room by the huge aft window because I simply hated the vibration.

 

The lovely lady in charge of dining room seating remembered that the entire rest of our cruise, and always made sure I was seated further forward there, just another example of the wonderful service on Oceania!

[hondorner]

Don,

 

Actually, the four forward corner suites on Azamara are called Royal Suites, while the six aft corner suites on Azamara are called Penthouse Suites. So Vista Suite on Oceania = Royal Suite on Azamara and Owner's Suite on Oceania = Penthouse Suite on Azamara.

 

Dave

Whoops! My bad. I had the deck plans in front of me when I typed that, but I failed to discern the difference in the suite plan colors. I just assumed that a Royal Suite was fancier than a Penthouse Suite, and therefore the Royal Suites would be aft. I should have known better -- Celebrity Penthouse Suites are bigger than Royal Suites. But I had my "Oceania" hat on, where Penthouse Suites are not as grand.

 

Dang. I hate to be wrong about anything. Thanks for catching it -- I fall on my sword. ;)

[DaveFr]

Whoops! My bad. I had the deck plans in front of me when I typed that, but I failed to discern the difference in the suite plan colors. I just assumed that a Royal Suite was fancier than a Penthouse Suite, and therefore the Royal Suites would be aft. I should have known better -- Celebrity Penthouse Suites are bigger than Royal Suites. But I had my "Oceania" hat on, where Penthouse Suites are not as grand.

 

Dang. I hate to be wrong about anything. Thanks for catching it -- I fall on my sword. ;)

I hope you didn't hit any vital organs! :D

 

Dave

[StanandJim]

Dang. I hate to be wrong about anything

 

Don-

 

You could always blame your glasses, as I have taken to doing! :p

 

 

 

We'd like to suggest, though, that the color coding on Azamara's deck plans is at fault, not you.

Why are the Royal Suites AND the Penthouse Suites both intermediate blue (i.e. not light blue, not dark blue)?

That must have been suggested by the same genius who opted not to show the hallway walls, or the lifeboats!

 

THINK of the money that they are saving on ink!

[hondorner]

The problem is that I lazily used Azamara's site instead of the wonderful CruiseStateroom.com, which you previously recommended. One feature of the subscription side of that site (which I joined; it is well worth the lifetime charge of $12.99) is an interactive deck map -- click on any stgateroom on any ship and it will interactively display the category. No more depending on colors! My only excuse is that I'm still learning to use cruisestateroom.com to its fullest extent.

 

To redeem myself, I learned another important difference between Oceania and Azamara -- the Sky Suites on A are smaller than the similar Penthouse Suites on O. The difference in the stateroom is 232 sq ft vs. 260 sq ft; the balcony differenceis 57 sq ft vs. 62 sq ft. This suggests that the Sky Suites are approximately 2' narrower than the Penthouse Suites. That's a significant difference when the primary advantage of the PH Suites is the additional width...

[DaveFr]

To redeem myself, I learned another important difference between Oceania and Azamara -- the Sky Suites on A are smaller than the similar Penthouse Suites on O. The difference in the stateroom is 232 sq ft vs. 260 sq ft; the balcony differenceis 57 sq ft vs. 62 sq ft. This suggests that the Sky Suites are approximately 2' narrower than the Penthouse Suites. That's a significant difference when the primary advantage of the PH Suites is the additional width...

Interesting. I just checked the Azamara site and it says that Sky Suites are 266 sq ft plus a 60 sq ft balcony. I wonder which site (Azamara or cruisestateroom.com) is correct?

 

Dave

[Brianna14]

My husband and just upgraded to an Owner's Suite on a Baltic cruise in June and we are very excited. We have been in a Penthouse suite before but were wondering what are some of the extras offered in the OS besides just extra space. Are there any laundry priviledges, can we eat in the specialty restaurants every night (not that we would want to), and what can we expect from our butler? We would love to hear from some of you on how your experience was.

 

Melody and David

[hondorner]

That is interesting. The likely answer is, neither. After a further search, I found numbers all over the map for both cruise lines. I've also found that deck plans are not drawn to scale, so it's tough to figure it out that way. I suspect the numbers on CruiseStateroom were submitted by a passenger's actual measurements, and could be different than those by the ship. It could be a matter as simple as whether one measures from the inside of the walls or the outside -- this comes up all the time in real estate.

 

I guess I should withdraw the comparison until I can measure for myself.

[orchestrapal]

Melody and David,

There are not too many extras but you do get some free pressing, I believe it is 3 or 4 pieces. You get a very nice Oceania tote for each. Free water used to be a perk but that seems to now be system wide. The linens are nicer and then of course there is the wonderful space both inside as well as outside.

Your butler can take care of most of you wants while on board such as reservations for the specialty restaurants pretty much any time you want them. We don't take advantage of that but our neighbors did eat there almost every night.

You will have one problem and that is, that once you've had a cruise in an OS, you'll never want anything else. Just enjoy the great experience!:):)

[Brianna14]

Thanks so much for the information and I was thinking the same thing about getting spoiled with the accomodations. It is fun to splurge at least once in awhile.

 

Melody and David

[Leonid]

For our 01/2010 and 06/2010 sailing on the Regatta, we decided that a VS would suffice. Got 7005 on the latter and a guaranteed VS on the former.

[orchestrapal]

Glad you got the 7th deck VS. Enjoy both cruises!:)

[chorton702]

Hello,

 

My partner and I just returned home from being on Regatta OS # 6091. This was Rio to Barcellona.

 

In all we were very happy.

 

There is vibration and you can feel the motion more. This does not bother us. The space was very nice. Great for entertaining.

 

If you are in a suite, atleast on this cruise you did get free bottled water. We could have eaten in the specality restrauants anytime we wished, and every day. We showed up without reservations and got served.

 

Having your meals in your room or on your veranda was very nice. We did it every third night or so. I did not do this when in PS, as the space was not comfortable for dining in too me. Table is too small.

 

We did get free use of the spa whirlpool and water massage bed.

 

Internet is not free. You can't plug your own laptop into the ships system. They do provide a dell laptop that is plugged in. This ship does have shipwide wireless, HOWEVER in our suite it did not work unless you opened the door.

 

Several times I went to use the tub and the water was dark brown. YIKES! I'm not sure how, but when reported it was fixed.

 

The veranda space in 6091 is quite private and roomey. Since this was a crossing we used the numerous sea days to tan. We did it nude. BIG PLUS. On days where it was too windy to lay ot by the pool, we were blessed with blocked wind.

 

If using the Veranda while the ship is moving is important too you, dont get a vista suite. They are not usable.

[jane02]

Hello,

 

My partner and I just returned home from being on Regatta OS # 6091. This was Rio to Barcellona.

 

In all we were very happy.

 

There is vibration and you can feel the motion more. This does not bother us. The space was very nice. Great for entertaining.

 

If you are in a suite, atleast on this cruise you did get free bottled water. We could have eaten in the specality restrauants anytime we wished, and every day. We showed up without reservations and got served.

 

Having your meals in your room or on your veranda was very nice. We did it every third night or so. I did not do this when in PS, as the space was not comfortable for dining in too me. Table is too small.

 

We did get free use of the spa whirlpool and water massage bed.

 

Internet is not free. You can't plug your own laptop into the ships system. They do provide a dell laptop that is plugged in. This ship does have shipwide wireless, HOWEVER in our suite it did not work unless you opened the door.

 

Several times I went to use the tub and the water was dark brown. YIKES! I'm not sure how, but when reported it was fixed.

 

The veranda space in 6091 is quite private and roomey. Since this was a crossing we used the numerous sea days to tan. We did it nude. BIG PLUS. On days where it was too windy to lay ot by the pool, we were blessed with blocked wind.

 

If using the Veranda while the ship is moving is important too you, dont get a vista suite. They are not usable.

Thanks for those details. We have been allocated 6091 so it sounds perfect. Glad you enjoyed your cruise.

Do you get free laundry with an OS?

[Brianna14]

Thanks for the wealth of information. We are in 7114 on a Baltic cruise this summer and I hope we will be able to use the veranda. I had to laugh when you mentioned using the internet with the door open. I wonder why? Do you still get the complimentary wine upon arrival?

 

Melody and David

[riversidecruiser]

There will be a bottle of non-vintage Perrier-Jouet champagne on ice awaiting your arrival:D

[Leonid]

Although little known, one can ask the butler to exchange the bubbly for a bottle of house wine (red or white). We are not champagne drinkers and the exchange worked for us.

Regarding siting out on the veranda in an VS, it all depends on ones sea legs. We had 7005 on a LAX to MIA sailing. Even on the very windy days, I used the veranda.

[brian_uk]

"" The veranda space in 6091 is quite private and roomey. Since this was a crossing we used the numerous sea days to tan. We did it nude. BIG PLUS. On days where it was too windy to lay ot by the pool, we were blessed with blocked wind. ""

 

Sorry I cannot resist it.....but what do you take to cure this type of wind..........

 

Brian