3 adults in one room?

Hi, I am in the process of looking to book a cruise for three adults - my sister, mum and I - and would appreciate a view from you as to whether it is possible to have three adults in one room? The costs for a solo traveller appear high, so I thought I would look at this as an option - you can tell I am new to this!

Any help or advice would be much appreciated. Many thanks :)

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

JMO -- but I would not want 3 adults in one cabin. It will be crowded when you all are trying to dress for excursions, clean up and dress for dinner. Bathrooms are not that large.

Depends on a few things. Room sizes vary, but even with a typical room, if you are comfortable with your fellow travelers (don't mind sharing "your space") it can work. Personalities can come to the surface quickly in tight quarters, so if someone has a short fuse with another's quirks/traits, it could be a long trip. If there are physical/medical issues (ex.: requiring extended bathroom/private time) scheduling or locating the closet public restroom or lounging areas is a good idea. We have travelled with family members this way a few times, so talking from experience.

Don't know about your neck of the woods, but in US, yes, single travel is basically double price, just like two per cabin except only one port/tax fee. I have found discounted single rates on occasion, but usually last minute deals.

Yes it is possible to get three adults in a room. It's cosy, remember cabins on a cruise ship are much smaller than a hotel room. But realistically you don't spend much time in your cabin.

I would spend time looking at layout of cabins on the ship you are thinking of sailing on. As some of the third beds drop from the ceiling while others are the fold out couch style.

I was in an inside room with three women and a 3y.o. I slept in the bunk bed while 3y.o slept in a trundle bed.

If you want extra space a balcony might be an idea, but again you need to check the layout of the room. If sofa-bed is by balcony when made up it may block access to balcony but if it is on the other side it might block access to toilet. There are plenty of images online so just do a search of the room you are interested in booking. Also with a balcony room the Sq Ft usually includes balcony, the ocean views I've been in are actually bigger than the actual balcony room.

I hope this helps.

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Welcome to Cruise Critic!

Since it'll be with your sister and mother, you should be all right with one cabin for three. All of you have lived and shared with each other before. :)

Do consider getting a cabin with a balcony.

LuLu

Yes, three adults in a cabin does work and I speak from experience. However, be aware that in some cabins the third bed may well be a pulldown bed rather than a convertible sofa. Our DD is still capable and happy to scramble up the steps to her bunk, which she says is actually quite comfortable, but there is no way you would get me up to one :eek:

On RCI, the sq. footage does NOT include the balcony space...check the deck plans for your ship to see how much space the cabin you are thinking of booking has.

It will be VERY tight...no privacy except in the bathroom. If you can swing a JS, it will have space more like a hotel room...

If you are easy going and get along well, there should be no problem. A balcony cabin would give some "get out of the way" space while changing for dinner, for example. You would definitely want a convertible sofa bed rather than a drop-down bunk.

you will only be shown those cabins that can sleep 3. but you will need to have the deck plans right there to determine whether that third bed is a pull out couch, or a pullman( Folds out from the ceiling)

as for making it work, keep in mind that a typical non suite cabin is half the size of a hotel room.. maybe smaller. quarters are very tight. this is especially true in bathrooms. balconies can help get people out form underfoot as you get ready for dinner or dressed in the morning. some people even run off to the Gym to shower there.

and I am sorry but I always have to laugh at those people who swear you never spend any time in your cabin. blatantly NOT TRUE for a large number of people.

can it be done? absolutely. it's done all the time. whether or not it an ENJOYABLE time.. well that is less cut and dried.

you will only be shown those cabins that can sleep 3. but you will need to have the deck plans right there to determine whether that third bed is a pull out couch, or a pullman( Folds out from the ceiling)

 

as for making it work, keep in mind that a typical non suite cabin is half the size of a hotel room.. maybe smaller. quarters are very tight. this is especially true in bathrooms. balconies can help get people out form underfoot as you get ready for dinner or dressed in the morning. some people even run off to the Gym to shower there.

 

and I am sorry but I always have to laugh at those people who swear you never spend any time in your cabin. blatantly NOT TRUE for a large number of people.

 

can it be done? absolutely. it's done all the time. whether or not it an ENJOYABLE time.. well that is less cut and dried.

How much time do you spend in your cabin?

If I have a balcony I spend time on it soaking in the rays in peace and quiet or looking at the scenery.

But if in any other cabin I pretty much spend it sleeping or getting changed and nothing else.

What other reason is there to be in your non-balcony room (except sexy times 😉)?

Now if I had paid to be in suit I would spend time in it due to money spent!

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How much time do you spend in your cabin?

 

a lot. i get tired very easily and If I am having a bad day, I will spend it in the cabin. there are times when I have a flare that i never even get dressed, let alone leave the cabin. thank goodness the burger on the RS menu is so good....

I have done a Transatlantic cruise with 3 women in balcony cabin and it was really no problem at all. I am not sure I would do it in an inside cabin, as it was nice to 'get away' out on the balcony.

You can do it quite easily, but cut back on packing a bunch of stuff because storage space is at a premium. Store the empty suitcases under the bed.

a lot. i get tired very easily and If I am having a bad day, I will spend it in the cabin. there are times when I have a flare that i never even get dressed, let alone leave the cabin. thank goodness the burger on the RS menu is so good....

But your still in bed sleeping, relaxing, or recuperating and occasionally eating room service. Admittedly 3 adults trying to eat in cabin other than a suit would logistically be difficult due to lack of surface area.

But if three adults wanted to sleep during the day, this would be the same as sleeping at night.

Certainly if you have young children you would spend more time in the room with quite/nap time. Or health issues might necessate spending more time than usual in the cabin, but OP didn't mention health issues, so I assume that they

Wouldn't have any out of the ordinary reason to be in their cabin during the day, I don't think it is unreasonable to think that the majority of cruisers use their cabins for bedroom activities!

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Hi, I am in the process of looking to book a cruise for three adults - my sister, mum and I - and would appreciate a view from you as to whether it is possible to have three adults in one room? The costs for a solo traveller appear high, so I thought I would look at this as an option - you can tell I am new to this!

 

Any help or advice would be much appreciated. Many thanks :)

Look at the expense verse the crowding factor and do a value comparison. Which are you able to put up with more?

 

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as for making it work, keep in mind that a typical non suite cabin is half the size of a hotel room.. maybe smaller. quarters are very tight. this is especially true in bathrooms.

 

...

 

Silly comment - the bathrooms are the size they are regardless of whether there is one or four people sharing the cabin. One person uses bathroom, second changes in the cabin, while the third hangs out on the balcony - or just sits on the bed until time to shift.

Yes it is possible. Also for four adults in one cabin. I've never tried having two people getting dressed at the same time, because that would be pointless.

On my holidays, cabins are for sleeping, washing, and changing. Sleeping is something that can be done by everyone at once; for the rest, there are about 16 spare hours in the day - just allocate 5 hours apiece to wash and dress, and there's 1 spare for emergencies! :)

For my 50th birthday, myself and 2 of my girlfriends shared a balcony cabin -- actually it was a mini-suite (not really a "suite" but it had a little extra square footage) on NCL Breakaway. We had a blast. We had no problems at all getting ready at the same time. We simply made a plan of who was going to shower while the others were doing hair, makeup, etc. One thing that did come in handy (and I won't go on a cruise without it) is an over-the-door shoe holder. With 3 ladies and all the hair products, toiletries, etc, it is a great tool for keeping the bathroom organized. We each had a row of pockets for all of our stuff.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

Personally, I would not do it..but if you decide, remember that you can always shower in the gym to speed up the dinner dress time!

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I agree with phillygirl63. Two female friends and I have cruised together many times in a balcony room. We do as phillygirl63 suggests regarding showering, dressing, etc., although we've never brought an over door holder of any sort and always had enough space.

I never thought about taking a shower in the gym. I have two teenagers to contend with getting ready for dinner. Thanks for the tip.

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I think it would be fine and not much of a problem, but some ships have "family staterooms" these have extra room and are geared for more then two travelers, they are usually more expensive than regular inside cabins but still pretty cheap to were it would be worth upgrading. If you can't get one of those just go for a balcony with a pullout couch. Some ships have promos were the third person sales 50%off and sometimes even for free.... sounds like you could save a lot of money and have a really fun time by all sharing a room.

Gym showers are great. I have used them and they seem to have a lot more room. If you are close to the gym it can work out great.

If you can afford a Balcony, go for it as it is somewhere for solitude when everyone wants to get dressed for dinner and you have finished first. The cost when divided three ways is not usually that expensive per head as "third person" rate is comparatively cheap often base rate.

The tricky bit in my opinion is using the actual toilet when you are all in a mass "get showered ready for dinner situation". Under these circumstances you need to know the location of nearest public facility.

In my opinion this is the only time you can feel a bit crammed in as a family group.

Regards John

@neugle

It partly depends on the ship and the room. I have twice shared an INSIDE on the Holland America S-class Statendam (no longer with the fleet, but three sister ships are) with my husband and one of our mothers. This is their older save one class of ships, but oddly the insides were bigger on the older ships! It was doable but in fact other than my husband catching naps whenever he could, we did not spend much time in the room.

After that, I/husband/my mom cruised 14-days around Cape Horn on the HAL Zaandam (next oldest to the S-class). We had booked an oceanview but took an upsell (paid upgrade) to a balcony. The third (in all three cases) was a twin sofa-bed occupied by the mum. The room steward(s) will make it up each evening and turn it back to a sofa for the day (unless you tell them to leave as bed as was necessary for my seasick MIL!). The balcony room for the NON sleeping arrangement was much better for three people, more room to move around, three "banks" of drawers (one each), and an endtable or nightstand each. We had a pre-dinner drink around the little free-standing table many evenings.

Considering that you are family and seemingly get along, I would recommend a cruise!

PS, what cruise and which lines are you thinking of? you might get specific recommendations...

We have done this many times. You do not have a ton of extra room, but you do not need it. Just remember it will take a bit longer to get dressed and all made up. Much less expensive on most lines to do this than pay the single cruiser rate for a second room.