Britannia inside cabins

Hi, know that there is not lots of info yet until more folk sail on her but hope someone can help me with this, we are looking to book an inside cabin for 2 adults and 2 kids on an inside cabin, here is the thing though, there are sooo many grades of inside cabin, whats the difference?!? PF is the lowest grade inside, but there is also PA, PB, PC, PD, PE and then its PF. It appears that they are all the same as the larger insides are OA and OB.

We basically just dont know why there is a different code for the standard insides, what would be the difference between them??

Thanks

It's simply the location of the cabins. Mid-ships is seen as the optimum position in a ship, in terms of stability and is also beneficial as you are located closer to the central atrium of the ship, which means the walk to the forward and aft of the ship is fairly equal. Means you will avoid having to walk from one end of the ship to the other.

In older ships there is sometimes a vibration or noise above the pods/propellers powering the ship at the aft. On modern ships like Britannia, such differences between forward/mid/aft should be moderate. However in rough seas you will benefit from being lower and closer to the middle of the ship.

Often however, like in luxury apartments, the higher decks are now often seen as being more premium, affording a better vantage from a balcony and being well above the engine rooms.

However for an inside with no view being had, then in my opinion lower is probably better. Certainly having been on a low deck on Queen Elizabeth, built by the same Ship yard as Britannia, there was no noise or vibration on the lowest passenger deck, but stability was noticeably much better than it was on the higher decks in rough seas.

It's also worth checking what is above or below your cabin, as on a modern ship that is much more likely to be the source of noise than anything else. Selecting a cabin, with cabins above and below is generally more preferable to having a public room or swimming pool above or below you. I would much rather a forward or aft cabin, with cabins above and below, than one that is mid-ships with public rooms either above or below.

Hope that answers your question :)

For example although the insides on L deck are seen as premium, being forward/mid-ship, high deck and close to pools, I'd imagine there would be a fair chance of them being noisy with a pool and people walking above you and being close to busy public rooms. Some people however may think they are ideally located, close to where the action is :)

P&O quote an approx 161 square feet for the standard insides and 170 square feet for larger inside, so doing the maths that's just over 5% larger. I don't think by the look of the plan the larger ones take 3/4 people. Please note that the beds in the inside cabin will be upper Pullmans, so you will have to have your bed as two singles with the kids in fold down beds above you.

You have all been sooo helpful, thankyou so much, this has been so informative, much appreciated 😃

Just another tip for you ....

Assuming you research your cabin & are happy with the chosen grade / location taking all the factors mentioned above into consideration, make sure you tell P&O or your travel agent that you want NO upgrades!

The reason for this is that they might move you to a higher grade cabin (still an inside, unless you are very lucky) but you may then find yourself above / below a nightclub / swimming pool etc.

Hope this helps.

Joan

Gaz Roberts photo looks workable for 2 adults+2kids. I am at present in a smaller inside, no way would it work - in fact that photo may not be off the Britannia as that has s window and Britannia is either inside or balcony- be careful, insides at as I have said very small

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Yes that's just a generic image of an outside cabin but the bed arrangement is exactly how it is on an inside cabin! Although there is a little more square footage to an outside cabin usually. We have stayed in insides on Queen Mary 2, again approx 160 square foot, they were fine for us but for others they could be too small. We spend little time in our room, and use it for sleeping and getting ready. We often rotate who is in the room when getting ready as there isn't much space for 4.

The upper Pullmans are very comfortable but are quite high and certainly not suitable for anyone with any form of mobility issues. They are however, once up there very comfortable, even for an adult, although the head room isn't amazing. They do have their own lights up there, which is good for reading etc.

Generally you won't get a sofa in insides, which does mean seating is very limited. You've got to be disciplined but the cost savings are often significant over balconies and outsides, where you will often find sofa beds, which provide extra seating space in the day. As there are excellent facilities all around you, then there is no need to spend much time in the room at all.

On QM2 and the other Cunard ships many of the small insides take 4 guests. In fact Treastacey your cabin on Britannia could potentially have Upper Pullmans, they disappear into the ceiling and unless you really studied the ceiling you wouldn't have a clue they were there. They use an Allen key to release them and they don't even need to take the paintings off the walls above the beds. If you look at the Britannia deck plan you can see which inside cabins they are, as they have a small star symbol on them. You'll see that the 3/4 person cabins have exactly the same footprint and square footage as the standard insides.

Britannia Deck plans

https://www.pocruises.com/global/deckplans/Britannia/Britannia_Deckplans_2015-16.pdf

This has all been so helpful but i am wondering if even obstructed balcony might be the way to go but it's hundreds more?!? I wish there were more pics of Britannia to get an idea of how obstructed it would be. I like stargazing and would be bringing binoculars and at night its grest to sit out abd "gaze" but then there could be a lot of lights around the lifeboats which would limit me. Aaargh decisions!!!!!

Well one thing I would probably suggest, is if you can go for the Early saver or Late saver price on a balcony, rather than a Select fare. However I'm not sure if these are available on the voyage you are looking at. The late saver would obviously not be available till closer to the time of sailing. Both these fares give you a guarantee cabin. So if you select the lowest grade balcony (obstructed) on a guarantee basis, you won't be allocated a cabin straight away but you will be allocated at least that grade or higher.

As only around 6% of balcony cabins are obstructed on Britannia, from looking at the deck plans, there is a significant chance you will be allocated an unobstructed balcony. How significant the obstruction will be will vary but the worst you will get is a lifeboat, just in front and below the balcony screen.

The Royal Princess is basically the sister ship as Britannia and follows the same deck, balcony and lifeboat arrangement. The attached pictures shows the views from some if the worst affected obstructed balconies on Royal Princess. This would be what you would find on Deck G of Britannia where the obstructed cabins are. Some cabins will be more affected than others.

The balcony in good weather also increases cabin space, and you can use it as a nice seating area, your outside lounge. The actual balconies on Britannia are small however, I think this image I attach from Royal Princess, is a reflection of the size of the standard balconies.

Booking an Early/late fare will mean that Dining will be confirmed onboard, so you will be allocated either Club (late/early sitting) or freedom dining, turn up when you want and wait for a table to be allocated. Buzzers are provided to alert you when your table is ready. There are 2 freedom dining restaurants and 1 Club restaurant, so you are possibly more likely to get Freedom dining.

However in my experience there can be some flexibility on board, if you speak nicely to the restaurant managers. They can often be accommodating if you are allocated a sitting that isn't appropriate. The menu served in Club and Freedom restaurants is identical.

Obstructed balcony cabins are as follows: All on Deck G

IB Grade

G330 | G331 | G332 | G333 | G334 | G335 | G401 | G402 | G403 | G404 | G405 | G406 | G407 | G408 | G409 | G410 | G411 | G412

IC Grade

G324 | G325 | G326 | G327 | G328 | G329 | G507 | G508 | G509 | G510 | G511 | G512 | G514 | G515 | G516 | G517 | G518 | G519 | G520 | G521 | G522 | G523 | G611 | G612 | G614 | G615

IE Grade

G616 | G617 | G618 | G619 | G620 | G621 | G622 | G623

JB Grade

G414 | G415 | G416 | G417 | G420 | G421 | G424 | G425 | G428 | G429 | G432 | G433 | G436 | G437 | G438 | G439 | G440 | G441 | G442 | G443 | G444 | G445 | G501 | G502 | G503 | G504 | G505 | G506

JC Grade

G226 | G227 | G228 | G229 | G230 | G231 | G301 | G302 | G303 | G304 | G305 | G306 | G307 | G308 | G309 | G310 | G311 | G312 | G314 | G315 | G318 | G319 | G322 | G323 | G524 | G525 | G526 | G528 | G529 | G530 | G531 | G5353 | G601 | G602 | G603 | G604 | G605 | G606 | G607 | G608 | G609 | G610

JE Grade

G624 | G625 | G626 | G627 | G628 | G629 | G630 | G631

In answer to your question on lights from lifeboats, here are images of the ship at night. As you can see there are lights on the promenade deck but Deck G which is the first one above the top of the lifeboats is not illuminated by the lifeboats or the lights on the promenade deck below, and is just as dark as the balconies on the decks above :)

I've highlighted deck G (the location of the obstructed balconies) in red so you can make it out, just in case my explanation wasn't particularly clear :)

Duplicate

Gazroberts, i cant thank you enough, i really appreciate all the help and advice you have gave me, will let u know what we decide on, its between obstructed bal or larger inside, thankyou!!

Also don't leave it too late to book a 3 or 4 berth cabin if you want one in school holidays. There are only a certain number and they go quite quickly.

Britannia Deck plans

 

https://www.pocruises.com/global/deckplans/Britannia/Britannia_Deckplans_2015-16.pdf

Can anyone tell me what's on lido deck between marlow suite and the library? We are in an inside cabin just below.