Balcony Furniture on Princess Sapphire ???

[GrandCanyon2005]

I read that the balcony furniture is the pits on Princess. I didn't want to hijack the other thread, so I thought I would post here. I've made duplicate deposits on both Princess Sapphire and Norwegian Sun for an Alaskan cruise. Our cruise isn't until the summer of 2013, so we have a lot of time to make a decision before canceling one.

 

I've paid "a lot" for an Aft Suite, with the sole purpose of using the balcony for our family. However, just how uncomfortable is the balcony furniture? I've heard the Suite amenities on Norwegian are better and solely booked Princess for the balcony ... but if the balcony is as uncomfortable as the board has made it sound then I have more reasons to switch to Norwegian. Thoughts, recommendations?

[KarenCL]

Usually, suites have the teak furniture, rather than the metal/plastic type that is in the minisuites and balcony cabins. I don't know if they changed this on Sapphire for the full suites, but in the minisuite, the new balcony furniture is the pits! So uncomfortable that we just couldn't use it. Our backs were killing us. I wrote about this to Princess and received a call about it. The gentleman I spoke with said that they had received numerous complaints about it. I suggested that the person who purchased it probably never sat in it before signing on the dotted line! I would confirm with Princess that you still have the teak balcony furniture if this is very important to you. I know that we really enjoy our balcony use and this really put a damper on our March cruise on Sapphire. We are booked again in October, so I am really, really hoping that Princess listened to the passengers and changed out the furniture. Otherwise, I plan on dragging some pool deck chairs down to our cabin!! Good luck!!

[nukesubsailor]

I read that the balcony furniture is the pits on Princess. I didn't want to hijack the other thread, so I thought I would post here. I've made duplicate deposits on both Princess Sapphire and Norwegian Sun for an Alaskan cruise. Our cruise isn't until the summer of 2013, so we have a lot of time to make a decision before canceling one.

 

I've paid "a lot" for an Aft Suite, with the sole purpose of using the balcony for our family. However, just how uncomfortable is the balcony furniture? I've heard the Suite amenities on Norwegian are better and solely booked Princess for the balcony ... but if the balcony is as uncomfortable as the board has made it sound then I have more reasons to switch to Norwegian. Thoughts, recommendations?

I haven't been on the Sapphire yet but was on the Star in May and the penthouse category of full suite had very comfortable balcony furniture. It was teak and had cushions. Much better than the mini-suite balcony furniture. It even had a table large and tall enough to eat a meal on. I would assume the Sapphire would have the same furniture for its full suites. Hope so as my next cruise is on the Sapphire.

[capriccio]

I read that the balcony furniture is the pits on Princess. I didn't want to hijack the other thread, so I thought I would post here. I've made duplicate deposits on both Princess Sapphire and Norwegian Sun for an Alaskan cruise. Our cruise isn't until the summer of 2013, so we have a lot of time to make a decision before canceling one.

 

I've paid "a lot" for an Aft Suite, with the sole purpose of using the balcony for our family. However, just how uncomfortable is the balcony furniture? I've heard the Suite amenities on Norwegian are better and solely booked Princess for the balcony ... but if the balcony is as uncomfortable as the board has made it sound then I have more reasons to switch to Norwegian. Thoughts, recommendations?

 

 

We had a Vista Suite on Sapphire Princess in May with the 'usual' (which we like) teak furniture (2 padded chaise lounges, end table, dining table and 4 chairs). Where are you seeing complaints about the full suite balcony furniture? All the complaints I've see were about changes to the balcony and mini-suite balcony furniture.

[GrandCanyon2005]

We had a Vista Suite on Sapphire Princess in May with the 'usual' (which we like) teak furniture (2 padded chaise lounges, end table, dining table and 4 chairs). Where are you seeing complaints about the full suite balcony furniture? All the complaints I've see were about changes to the balcony and mini-suite balcony furniture.

 

That's good, but I'm going to ask that Princess send me a written letter assuring me of the comfortable Teak furniture and not the new stuff. I doubt they will, but I'm going to go with whichever company provides the greatest assurance on my concerns. Thanks for sharing your experience though.