Grand Suites Serenade

[Waiting for September]

We just had 1600 and loved it (aft grand suite). We are planning to go next September and it is not available. What is everyone's input on the other grand suites???

 

It is still available for Oct as of now but I was really hoping to go in September. I know they are all nice but how are views and balconies, etc.

[Laoghaire]

Hi WfS...Husband and I had #1052 in April, and loved it! Right next to Concierge Lounge (no noise), and elevators. Hope this helps.

 

Happy Sailings.

 

Helen

[Waiting for September]

Hi WfS...Husband and I had #1052 in April, and loved it! Right next to Concierge Lounge (no noise), and elevators. Hope this helps.

 

Happy Sailings.

 

Helen

 

Being close to the CL would be nice but the long walk was part of weight control program. I need to be more open minded and accept that all the suites are great. We did love stopping by the lounge. Guess I will just have to bring my tennies and hit the gym!

[sandinmypants]

Wish we could afford one! I've been browsing all of the pictures, and they look really nice. If there's a price drop we may be able to upgrade, otherwise it's just out of our reach.... dang it!

[Waiting for September]

Wish we could afford one! I've been browsing all of the pictures, and they look really nice. If there's a price drop we may be able to upgrade, otherwise it's just out of our reach.... dang it!

 

We blew it by going big the first time out. I thought I would be able to step down for next time but found we enjoyed the whole experience (concierge service and suite) that I just want to do it all over again. I will figure out somewhere to sqeak the money from. I waited 35 years to get around to a cruise. Guess this is payback. I just loved the aft cabin but I am sure we will love another room as well.

[flcruzer03]

How was the balcony size on GS1600? We had a GS on Monarch last year & even with it being a side room the balcony seemed huge...we had a corner aft on Mariner..deck 9 and found the balcony to be very small...wondering if deck 10 on Serenade is better?

[Waiting for September]

How was the balcony size on GS1600? We had a GS on Monarch last year & even with it being a side room the balcony seemed huge...we had a corner aft on Mariner..deck 9 and found the balcony to be very small...wondering if deck 10 on Serenade is better?

 

It was quite large. This seems to be a suite you either love or hate and in our case we fell totally in love with the room, the balcony and the location! Being our first cruise I have nothing to compare with but the walk back was no big deal (walking off all the food), we had no problem with the Windjammer above (heard a few footsteps in the morning..no big deal) and looking out over the wake was so amazing. We loved pulling out of port and sitting back there and watching.

 

We had a great table on the balcony and had room service breakfast out there in the AM and wine out there at night. Wanna go back...NOW!

[Toodang]

My DH and I had GS #1554 on the Serenade and it was wonderful. By far the best GS ever! Floor to ceiling and wall to wall windows. Across from the Concierge Lounge.

[Toodang]

Oh, I forgot! We're leaving this Saturday on the Jewel to Canada/New England. JS #1100. :)

[Waiting for September]

My DH and I had GS #1554 on the Serenade and it was wonderful. By far the best GS ever! Floor to ceiling and wall to wall windows. Across from the Concierge Lounge.

 

That is my back up one!!

[Waiting for September]

Oh, I forgot! We're leaving this Saturday on the Jewel to Canada/New England. JS #1100. :)

 

That is a really great suite too! Got that aft balcony. I looked at like 6 weeks of sailings next year and it is booked!

[Toodang]

I booked this suite last July 2009. They're really hard to come by.

[Retired LEO]

We just had 1600 and loved it (aft grand suite). We are planning to go next September and it is not available. What is everyone's input on the other grand suites???

 

It is still available for Oct as of now but I was really hoping to go in September. I know they are all nice but how are views and balconies, etc.

 

It doesn't hurt to call RCI and be on a waitlist for that cabin. In the event of a cancellation they'll call and ask you if you still want it.

[Waiting for September]

It doesn't hurt to call RCI and be on a waitlist for that cabin. In the event of a cancellation they'll call and ask you if you still want it.

 

Great thought! I booked our September trip last April and the agent was surprised it was available. We just lucked out. It was open yesterday and gone today so maybe someone will change their mind!

[Rancher Dave]

We blew it by going big the first time out. I thought I would be able to step down for next time but found we enjoyed the whole experience (concierge service and suite) that I just want to do it all over again. I will figure out somewhere to sqeak the money from. I waited 35 years to get around to a cruise. Guess this is payback. I just loved the aft cabin but I am sure we will love another room as well.

 

Ask for an owners suite next time...that would make up for location difference.

 

Glad you liked the cruise you had and especially the big suite...it is always a nice kind of cabin to have.

[Waiting for September]

Ask for an owners suite next time...that would make up for location difference.

 

Glad you liked the cruise you had and especially the big suite...it is always a nice kind of cabin to have.

 

Hmmm. sure don't want to pay for an owner's suite. Pushing the limits with the grand suite. We just got really spoiled with the Concierge perks and the aft balcony. LOVED the cruise and live for the next one!

[janazaz]

We just had 1600 and loved it (aft grand suite). We are planning to go next September and it is not available. What is everyone's input on the other grand suites???

 

It is still available for Oct as of now but I was really hoping to go in September. I know they are all nice but how are views and balconies, etc.

 

Okay, here's the scoop and my opinion. As you know we were in 1052 when you were in 1600...even though I tried to get RCL to upgrade you so we could have had 1600 for the B2B. I'm still mad you didn't depart earlier but you've heard that before and apparently have no remorse by making us wait it out. :)

 

If 1052 would have been in the aft I would have loved it all. We've been in other GS on Brillance (sister to Serenade) and they're all alike down that hallway. The rooms are much bigger, the balcony is much bigger and deeper than 1600 and doesn't have the wasted space. They have larger closets, larger dressing area, more storage and two floor to ceiling windows are great plus the long bar was really nice. The noise level in 1052 was more noticeable on this cruise. They played "who let the dogs out" Latin style every night it seems like and stomped to the beat because the pool was directly above us and a big party was happening every night until at least 1:00AM. Because it was a "Latin" theme, between the pool party stomping and the Centrum also doing the Latin beats it was quite noisey. Loved the convenience to the CL and the elevators. Didn't like people from the CL being able to gawk at us if we were standing at the rails outside our room...we could see them too. Also, there is a huge overhang. This worked out great on the first leg because we had some rain and could sit outside and enjoy the rain. Since we're both from AZ you know how we Zonies love the rain.

 

Now when we "finally" got to 1600 (thank you again for making us wait!) for the second leg of the cruise we were first very disappointed that everything seemed smaller with less storage and there was wasted space in this cabin. Gosh it would be nice to have all of those windows from the other GS and the large bar area. BUT...with all of this being said, I would still choose the aft because it was quieter, and the views were unbelieveable because we could actually see the moon and stars at night not to mention the ship's wake in the aft was very relaxing. Loved the views from 1600 while in port! The second leg was more Caribbean than Latin...I wonder if they played "who let the dogs out" to the bongo beat? I'll never know because 1600 was too far away from the action.

 

The other thing from 1600 that might be considered a negative is its on the smoking side (starboard) and the smell drifted down. We had a few cigarette butts on our balcony some mornings. People could also look down on us, but that was minimal intrusion. We do tend to sit outside a lot.

 

Now your neighbors (J&G) which also became our neighbors on the second leg since they were also on a B2B noticed the noise from above also on this leg. They said it wasn't so bad on the first trip, but even they seemed a little annoyed. We actually couldn't sit on the balcony the last night because the Windjammer maintenance/cleaning crew directly above us decided it was time for a major cleaning around 10PM as were packing. They "rained" on us by cleaning the deck for a couple of hours and moved chairs & tables for what seemed like forever. Not sure it was all water raining on us either.

 

My vote: Aft - loved the open balcony and quieter nights...most of the nights anyway. It was a great cruise and the minor inconveniences were just that...better than my days back at the office this week! I'm stilling thinking...okay, today is Thursday and the ship is in XXX port...wishing I was still there.

[Waiting for September]

Okay, here's the scoop and my opinion. As you know we were in 1052 when you were in 1600...even though I tried to get RCL to upgrade you so we could have had 1600 for the B2B. I'm still mad you didn't depart earlier but you've heard that before and apparently have no remorse by making us wait it out. :)

 

If 1052 would have been in the aft I would have loved it all. We've been in other GS on Brillance (sister to Serenade) and they're all alike down that hallway. The rooms are much bigger, the balcony is much bigger and deeper than 1600 and doesn't have the wasted space. They have larger closets, larger dressing area, more storage and two floor to ceiling windows are great plus the long bar was really nice. The noise level in 1052 was more noticeable on this cruise. They played "who let the dogs out" Latin style every night it seems like and stomped to the beat because the pool was directly above us and a big party was happening every night until at least 1:00AM. Because it was a "Latin" theme, between the pool party stomping and the Centrum also doing the Latin beats it was quite noisey. Loved the convenience to the CL and the elevators. Didn't like people from the CL being able to gawk at us if we were standing at the rails outside our room...we could see them too. Also, there is a huge overhang. This worked out great on the first leg because we had some rain and could sit outside and enjoy the rain. Since we're both from AZ you know how we Zonies love the rain.

 

Now when we "finally" got to 1600 (thank you again for making us wait!) for the second leg of the cruise we were first very disappointed that everything seemed smaller with less storage and there was wasted space in this cabin. Gosh it would be nice to have all of those windows from the other GS and the large bar area. BUT...with all of this being said, I would still choose the aft because it was quieter, and the views were unbelieveable because we could actually see the moon and stars at night not to mention the ship's wake in the aft was very relaxing. Loved the views from 1600 while in port! The second leg was more Caribbean than Latin...I wonder if they played "who let the dogs out" to the bongo beat? I'll never know because 1600 was too far away from the action.

 

The other thing from 1600 that might be considered a negative is its on the smoking side (starboard) and the smell drifted down. We had a few cigarette butts on our balcony some mornings. People could also look down on us, but that was minimal intrusion. We do tend to sit outside a lot.

 

Now your neighbors (J&G) which also became our neighbors on the second leg since they were also on a B2B noticed the noise from above also on this leg. They said it wasn't so bad on the first trip, but even they seemed a little annoyed. We actually couldn't sit on the balcony the last night because the Windjammer maintenance/cleaning crew directly above us decided it was time for a major cleaning around 10PM as were packing. They "rained" on us by cleaning the deck for a couple of hours and moved chairs & tables for what seemed like forever. Not sure it was all water raining on us either.

 

My vote: Aft - loved the open balcony and quieter nights...most of the nights anyway. It was a great cruise and the minor inconveniences were just that...better than my days back at the office this week! I'm stilling thinking...okay, today is Thursday and the ship is in XXX port...wishing I was still there.

 

 

Not gonna apologize for dragging our heels....did not want to leave as I am sure you didn't either at the end of the 2 weeks!!! Mike had to pry me out the door and down the hall. Major seperation anxiety.....still have it. I want my cabin back.:mad:

 

My problem is now we are going to book for next year and yesterday 1600 was available and today it isn't. Might be on Oct 8th but we will see in a week. So now I have to rethink things. I love the aft (even the JS's are booked)

 

I would have not enjoyed the things you had in 1052. We did have quiet and I did not notice any smoke. Although Mike kept us out till 1am every night so I probably would not have noticed. We did have a lit "butt" land on our patio chair one day. Luckily Mike saw it. Nobody really looked down over. Now the last night was the same thing you had. Major noise as they moved the furniture and hosed things off. Luckily they stopped at a decent hour so we could sleep. Small price to pay for the view from the back. I ate everything I wanted and between the long hall and the stairs I only gained a pound. I made Mike go to the CL and get my glass of champagne while I was dressing but he ate 2 desserts to make up for having to hike for me!

 

Thanks for your input..we are just going to have to meet up in AZ one of these days. I was sure I would meet you on the ship but didn't. I was very jealous of your second week. I did think of offering to camp on the sofa bed but did not have the vacation days!!!

[janazaz]

I betcha if you booked one of the other GS (maybe a little farther back) that 1600 will open up for you. Just don't book so close to the CL if you're doing this same cruise again. We'll be sailing again in Sept., but we've done the Caribbean too many times and we're ready for a change. It was pretty stinkin' hot with the humidity added into the mix.

 

Anxious to see your pics. Here is one of ours from Barbados.

[Waiting for September]

[ATTACH]169913[/ATTACH]I betcha if you booked one of the other GS (maybe a little farther back) that 1600 will open up for you. Just don't book so close to the CL if you're doing this same cruise again. We'll be sailing again in Sept., but we've done the Caribbean too many times and we're ready for a change. It was pretty stinkin' hot with the humidity added into the mix.

 

Anxious to see your pics. Here is one of ours from Barbados.

 

You pic did not show up. Love to see it.

 

I won't book near the CL. That would not have been fun seeing each other from your balcony. I was looking at 1556 on the hump and still trying to decide what to do. Lucky this is the biggest drama in my life!!!

I should just be glad I am able to cruise at all!

[RoofingPrincess]

It doesn't hurt to call RCI and be on a waitlist for that cabin. In the event of a cancellation they'll call and ask you if you still want it.

When we sailed the Serenade to Alaska last year, we originally booked JS1100 on the day bookings opened. MANY months later, we were looking for price drops and just happened to notice that GS1600 was available (and for the same price we had originally booked the JS at). So we moved up! Evidently no one was on the waitlist, because we grabbed it (and enjoyed it immensely).

 

I've never been able to figure out, though, why the designers of the ship put the most expensive cabins on deck 10 right under the Pool Deck. Plenty of people have had issues with noise from above. That's one of the reasons I really like having a cabin on deck 8 or 9 - nothing but passenger space above and below.

[Ontherocks47]

We just had 1600 and loved it (aft grand suite). We are planning to go next September and it is not available. What is everyone's input on the other grand suites???

 

It is still available for Oct as of now but I was really hoping to go in September. I know they are all nice but how are views and balconies, etc.

 

I had an aft suite on an NCL cruise and a GS midship fwd on the Enchantment. The GS on the Enchantment was great but I really did prefer the aft location we had on the other cruise better. You won't be disappointed with any GS but if you can get the aft location it really is best in my opinion.

[Waiting for September]

You pic did not show up. Love to see it.

 

I won't book near the CL. That would not have been fun seeing each other from your balcony. I was looking at 1556 on the hump and still trying to decide what to do. Lucky this is the biggest drama in my life!!!

I should just be glad I am able to cruise at all!

 

Nevermind...I see the pic. I thought it was your avatar. Beautiful.

[trixietx]

You will love your grand suite . The only thing we like better is the Owners suite! But the grand suite is grand and the jr. suite is fine for a 7 day cruise, as is a balcony room, for us anyway!

[cruisecrasy]

My DH and I had GS #1554 on the Serenade and it was wonderful. By far the best GS ever! Floor to ceiling and wall to wall windows. Across from the Concierge Lounge.

 

Were u in warm waters & was there any noise? Have had same cabin in Alaska so not much pool use or parties or within range so no noise above but in the warmer climes???