Question about window suites on the Grand

We recently sailed in a window suite on the Grand and loved most everything about it ... so much so, that we booked another one for next year. The only things I could find to complain about, and there really wasn’t much of that going on, was that the sofa was in terrible condition. The cushions keep sliding forward on the sofa making it not all that comfortable. Well, that isn’t a deal breaker and my only real concern with booking this same cabin again was that the jetted tub spewed out some rusty water from the plumbing fixtures and was a little anxious about sitting in a tub with rust all around the waters edge. I drained and refilled it ... same results. This was in F311 and was wondering if anyone has had the same issues in any of the other window suites....or should I say, was there anybody that used their tub and hasn’t had that issue in one of the window suites.

I don’t know what it would take for Princess to replace some of the rusty fixtures and pipes ... but seems like it should be addressed. I did mention it on my post cruise survey.

So, on the sailings I am interested in, I see that F305, F307 and F309 are also available and might consider one of those if they didn’t have any issues with rust in the jetted tub. And, what is the condition of the couches in those rooms, although this is really secondary to the rust issue?

Also, any noise issues in those other rooms I mentioned? No noise issue in F311 and would just stay there if all the window suites were equal. I liked the location a lot.

We were in F315 on the Caribbean Princess. Because it is an HA suite, we had no tub. No problems with the shower, and the water was clear.

However, as you noted, the sofa was sub-par. It functioned. That's about the best thing I can say about it.

There was a thread not too long ago where the "rust" in the water was mentioned and one of the regular posters (name escapes me) who is apparently an engineer of some type on ships, stated that it isn't rust and nothing to worry about.

I forget what he said it was. At least one brain cell dies every day.;)

We had one of the aft suites on GRAND PRINCESS a few years back. Since it was an Alaska cruise, I got a chill and decided to take a nice jacuzzi bath. I filled the tub up to the top...added a couple spoons of bath salts and proceeded to get in. Oh yeah...the jets. I pushed the button. A few rumbles and some air bubbles.. and WOOOSH, out shot a giant wad of black hair the size of a poodle (ok..it was smaller, but it seemed big at the time) Needless to say, the warm bath lost its appeal. The moral of the story is maybe you should let the bath run a few minutes..drain it and refill it, before the first use. Hey, you’re not paying the water bill. Good luck...they are great suites!

By far, F311 is the best Window Suite location. I have this thing about "recycled" water in the jacuzzi. So much that I brought a bottle of Clorox with me, filled the tube, ran the bleach, and filled it again to flush the system. Then used it once! Lots of "maybe's" with a "public" jacuzzi. There is always "left-overs" in the pipes from the previous user. The thought is wonderful. But not for me.

And your assessment of the sofa is correct. You would think Princess could do better.

We had one of the aft suites on GRAND PRINCESS a few years back. Since it was an Alaska cruise, I got a chill and decided to take a nice jacuzzi bath. I filled the tub up to the top...added a couple spoons of bath salts and proceeded to get in. Oh yeah...the jets. I pushed the button. A few rumbles and some air bubbles.. and WOOOSH, out shot a giant wad of black hair the size of a poodle (ok..it was smaller, but it seemed big at the time) Needless to say, the warm bath lost its appeal. The moral of the story is maybe you should let the bath run a few minutes..drain it and refill it, before the first use. Hey, you’re not paying the water bill. Good luck...they are great suites!

Oh my goodness ... that is pretty gross. I did drain and refill the tub with the same results. I checked the drain plug and all was corroded along the edges or the plug and the drain pipe.

I tend to get a respiratory ailment when I soak in the public hot tubs on a cruise so trying to avoid that as well. Maybe it's just coincidence but boy, was I ever sick last time I did that....now, that's put a fear into me that just won't quit. You can only imagine a hair ball shooting out of the jets would do. :eek:

By far, F311 is the best Window Suite location. I have this thing about "recycled" water in the jacuzzi. So much that I brought a bottle of Clorox with me, filled the tube, ran the bleach, and filled it again to flush the system. Then used it once! Lots of "maybe's" with a "public" jacuzzi. There is always "left-overs" in the pipes from the previous user. The thought is wonderful. But not for me.

 

And your assessment of the sofa is correct. You would think Princess could do better.

I did love that room location when we were in it last so thanks for your assessment on the location. Now, I know I've made a solid choice.

It's funny because we heard this knocking noise all night the first night out and thought we'd made a big mistake. It ended up being the umbrellas that were hanging in the closet. We just secured them between hanging clothes and problem solved.

And, I never thought about bringing bleach. I am sure if I'd have thought to ask the room steward, he'd have been able to find some for me. I just love soaking in a jacuzzi but it sounds like they are just not all that sanitary. I will consider taking a small bottle of bleach next time.

And now, for those sofas ... LOL!! But, those beds are heavenly!! I'd just hate to have to be the third person in the cabin that gets the sofa bed. ;)

I’ve been in a window suite on the CB and am booked in one on the Grand this Sept. as a general rule, I don’t use jetted tubs. There is no way of know what lurks in the jet plumbing. I only used the tub to shave my legs while sitting on the edge. Unless the jets have some sort of sanitizing cleaner ran through them after each guest, which I doubt ever happens, I still probably wouldn’t use them.

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I did love that room location when we were in it last so thanks for your assessment on the location. Now, I know I've made a solid choice.

It's funny because we heard this knocking noise all night the first night out and thought we'd made a big mistake. It ended up being the umbrellas that were hanging in the closet. We just secured them between hanging clothes and problem solved.

And, I never thought about bringing bleach. I am sure if I'd have thought to ask the room steward, he'd have been able to find some for me. I just love soaking in a jacuzzi but it sounds like they are just not all that sanitary. I will consider taking a small bottle of bleach next time.

And now, for those sofas ... LOL!! But, those beds are heavenly!! I'd just hate to have to be the third person in the cabin that gets the sofa bed. ;)

First, people are making the assumption that the tubs are not cleaned properly. Do you KNOW that they don't run bleach thru the system after each cruise? I worked in a hospital where jetted tubs were a big feature in their marketing, and they DID clean them with two different cleaners--one was bleach, on a supposed antiviral--after each patient left. OK, can I swear that a housekeeping person never got lazy and skipped it? No, but it was a part of the cleaning process. But yes, I'd have a chat with the steward and get some bleach from him to clean it myself.

Secondly, my adult daughter actually preferred the couch bed, to the point that we switched beds part way thru the cruise. I'd put the two girls in the twins so they could have their gab fests, etc. and took the couch bed for myself. Daughter felt the regular bed was too soft and much preferred the couch bed, while I felt just the opposite. My biggest complaint about the couch bed was the mechanism which extended out from the sides of the mattress. The steward used couch cushions to pad the area by my head, but several times I scraped a knee or leg on the metal parts farther toward the center of the bed. The fold out bed is not nearly as nice as what we've had on some other lines!