chisoxfan

We were on recent Apex and Ascent Sky Suite Cruises. We liked the cabins very much particularly the bed facing balcony and dual sink bathroom with nice sized shower, low tub arrangment. The Retreat pool was OK on both ships.. Ascent had two levels with a larger pool and 2 hot tubs vs 1 but the seating areas in shade were actually less inviting and filled up on our Carib cruise. Bar and small menu dining there also. Overall a nice place. Lounge on Apex had outdoor area which we prefered to more antiseptic Ascent. Luminae was a mixed bag. Service on Apex was outstanding and the hard working hostess did everything to accomodate desired tables. On the Ascent not so much. Tables for two were really small and close together- while the dining rooms were similar the Ascent seemed more constrained in 'good tables'. Food for us was OK-good and I enjoyed well prepared Escargot every night which was a treat. We never met a butler on our 10 day Apex cruise and had no more interaction with our cabin attendant than we would have in any cruise cabin on any line. A head butler introduced himself with attendant on first day of Ascent and handed us cards.... a good start and we had breakfast in the cabin the next AM where the head butler actually helped arrange the food. Great I thought... but that was absolutley the last time I saw any 'butler'. So in 17 days or Retreat cruising we had only one morning service where a butler was involved. It isn't a big deal except when I read some posts extolling butler services provided. For me the Retreat 'failure' was in the inconsitency of the experience(s). The other issue of course is value. We paid probablly 50-60% of the published rate (roughly equivalent to MSC YC)and at that price I would do it again. The Edge class ships are very nice. As many have pointed out, much better values exist with premium and semi premium lines but we really want to stay with larger newer ships. So X is off our radar currently and our next cruises are Princess Sun suites and MSC YC (and slumming on one HAL balcony). While MSC has understandably raised prices they have laudably maintained their benefits and service levels. X seemingly is fixated on 'cheapening' theirs while extracting more $$$ (drink packages and specialty dining coming immediately to mind). JMHO

Sure you would be fine. I would likely opt for this arrangement even vs. connecting room /balcony. To me a max bang for the buck family cruise vacation. Your kids are probably perfect age for this... old enough to have some 'controlled' autonomy. If you want to make yourself feel good about vacation cost look at corresponding options on X or NCL for their dedicated suite areas.

I would suggest at least considering the YC. As you probably know you would have your own pool, restaurant, and lounge (nightly entertainment). Premium drinks would be included and you would have stocked frig. Maybe an inside for kids and balcony for you across the hall? Sorry, maybe not an answer to your questions but just a suggestion.

We thought Fine Cut on Ascent was very good but felt Rooftop was the best experience. That said X has become excessive with their specialty dining prices... if I can pay for a comparable experience on land for similar dollars I would prefer that. Based on X pricing I would probably opt only for Rooftop and be 'satisfied'. We were in Retreat and had a bunch of OBC and still could not be tempted to try the 'higher end' ie. Daniel Boulud (we have eaten at his other props) dining experiences on Ascent as we just did not feel it worthwhile. JMHO

You win. That big metal structure with a circle cut out in front of your 'porthole veranda' isn't an obstruction. Surprised X doesn't call it an infinite porthole. My point was that it was never a 'traditional' balcony like we have all been familair with. Like the IV some will like it and some will hate it and it is a matter of personal preference. Peace and happy cruising.

Deck plans show DPV's as obstructed on their key. Deck Plan Key Obstructed View

If DPV is a balcony why does X call it a deluxe porthole view and obstructed. Those of us who have cruised for years know what a balcony is. I still have never seen a mini-suite on an Edge class ship. SV's are the only true balconies on Edge ships (besides Retreat) and they are limited, popular, and expensive (maybe a comentary on IV's). There are 36 SV's on Edge vs. 1400+ cabins. For the ones who liked AQ no balconies exist on Edge class with 130AQ on S class ships. You can label cabins how you wish ie (see Inflation reduction act) but most cruisers can understand what constitutes a balcony.

If X has 'mini suites' that is news to me. Obviously there are very limited real balconies on X Edge class ships (aft and Retreat only) and good luck finding one of those. We used to like AQ on X but don't want to book this on Edge Class because they are now IV. Everyone is different but we are gravitating to newer ships so for us X has really limited our options for a true balcony and while it is a nice product Retreat greatly disappoints us in value offered. We loved S ships on X and these were innovative but for us they may be getting long in the tooth.

Hate to pick on a ship but have to agree. We were on Carib Princess for a Panama Canal Cruise some years ago. The ship was old then, crew very disorganized, and the ship had a propulsion issue causing a change of ports. We were Princess fans prior to that and our bad experience prompted us to try MSC YC which was a positive eye opener. We were also X fans but the lack of balconies and cost of Retreat on Edge class made us look again at our options. So going full circle we tried Princess (Enchanted) and had a generally positive experience. Will try a suite on Princess Sun in early 25. The general product (X vs. Princess) is similar ie. entertainment, food, crew but of course all of these things can be tempered by the ship itself. IMHO Princess has done some innovative things with Medallion and drink packages where X has failed with lack of balconies on new ships, pricing, and adding non-refundable deposits. Hoping the Sphere class will be a step forward for Princess unlike the Edge class which for us was a sideways move.

Totally agree. The survey is flawed like many (most) and when I have done them feel that my real sentiments are not communicated. It is a convenient place to list exceptional crew members.

Again, never said that CC has any bearing on cruise line employees. Just offering my opinion that survey's can be a poor measure of actual satisfaction and modern management relies too much on them. It was not my intention to move 'off topic' but thanks for pointing out this transgression.

Never suggested it does. Just that an expansive give and take format like CC offers better insights than a survey. Additionally, my point was the corporate reliance on 'surveys' is mis- directed in my opinion.

That's the other issue with modern surveys.... management makes them 'important' and like when you get your oil changed at BMW they plead for a good score or 'they will be out on the street with their kids'. Ok, you changed the oil for an exorbitant price.... how good or bad can that experience be...A negative survey tends to hurt the poor stiff doing the work usually under the restraints of management. I expect to have a positive professional experience whether on a cruise, dining, or other service. I will glady bring up a terrible specific experience to management but it is not my job to do theirs and 'monitor' how they run their business. That is a valuable benefit of cruise critic...one can express their views (not limited by 25 words or less), get feedback from others, not punish individuals who probably had little to do with bad outcomes, and allow others to evaluate the input.

We also just booked Seascape YC for Jan 2025. A crazy trifecta... Princess Sun suite, HAL Nieuw Statendam with Orange club and then MSC. Sadly we did not consider X our previous fave cruise line as Retreat was 50% to 100% more than what was offered by the other cruises and just not worth it to us. AQ not considered because of IV on newer ships (our preference). Outside of drastic price drops in Retreat not seeing anything that would bring us back to X.