Are suites worth the extra $$?

[DCT61]

We aren't able to take multiple vacations a year, so the money we would have spent on several vacations...we put into a suite.

The Crown Loft Suites work well for us because:

a. We LOVE how QUIET and WIDE the corridors outside the room are.

b. We like the limited access to the suite area

c. We appreciate the tall ceilings. Im mildly claustrophobic, and the tall ceilings really help.

d. The two story windows cant be beat.

e. TWO BATHROOMS!!!

[cruzkitty]

We also enjoy sailing in a Suite. LOVED the Crown Loft on Oasis so much, that we have it booked again for September. We have also sailed in an Owners Suite on Oasis. The balcony is bigger on the Owners Suite, but I prefer the Crown Loft. Nothing like waking up, and grabbing the remote from the 2nd story, to open your blinds and look at the Caribbean first thing. I try to book well in advance, got the WOW sale, and watch for price drops.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

Thank you for all of your responses. I know it is more of a personal thing, but I just wanted to get some opinions on what everyone else thought.

 

I think we are going to go with a Grand Suite this cruise! So excited.

[Tall-Cruiser]

Hello, we are considering booking a suite on Allure, and I wonder if you could tell me a bit more about the changes to the lounges that you mentioned? We have stayed in suites on smaller ships I'm just trying to decide if the perks would be worth the big price difference on Allure.

 

Any info would be appreciated. Thanks :)

 

 

 

.

 

Firstly, you will enjoy Allure regardless of what type of cabin you get. She is a fantastic ship.

 

With respect to changes, Allure is due for her drydock next spring 2015. During this drydock she will get similar changes that were done to Oasis recently. Some of those changes include converting the CL to Wonderland, changing the Vicking Crown Lounge into a Suite Lounge, Coastal Kitchen and two additional suites. If you book a GS and above you will have access to these new lounges and CK. I am not sure that booking a JS gets you access to these new offerings unless you are a Pinnacle member. Maybe someone who has sailed on Oasis recently can confirm this.

 

One other thing to note. If you are sailing to Labadee and you are in a GS or above, you do get access to Barefoot Beach which is reserved for suite guest only.

Edited December 23, 2014 by Tall-Cruiser

[Fat Paul]

We will not sail in anything less than a Jr, we much prefer a grand or owners suite. That having been said we always shop for a good deal.

[goneclear]

Suite prices vary by quite a large amount based on the sailing dates. Sometimes by more than twice the amount. So if we can nab a suite at a price we feel fair we definitely go for it. We enjoy some of the extra perks that go with it.

If you ever do an Alaska cruise i definitely recommend a suite.

[CT Sean]

Only you can answer if it's worth it.

 

The two times we've sailed in a suite, I'd say it was worth it BUT we had our kids with us so extra space was greatly desired. When it's just my wife and I, we are perfectly happy in a balcony stateroom. Now if you asked me if the extra cost for a balcony is "worth it" over a regular oceanview, I would say yes - absolutely worth it.

[Debde]

For us, yes. We don't have the vacation time to take tons of cruises, so when we take one we have decided that we like the little bit of luxury.

 

Add me to that list. We all still work so we make that one or two vacations a year count!!

[shellunderwater]

We've sailed Allure in an OV balcony, Oasis in a CP balcony and Vision in an OV cabin. We enjoyed them immensely, not disappointed at all.

 

But, we have the opportunity to try a JS for $1,050 per person. Just can't pass up that opportunity to try a JS. We'd be happy in either a balcony or OV. Hopefully, this won't spoil us.

 

Everyone must determine what is worth it to them. No one can tell you. Personally, I can't imagine spending $3,000+ per person on a cabin on a RCL ship. But, there are those that do, and I respect their choice.

 

For us, its all about balance..... frequency vs. cost.

[Garavar]

If you ever do an Alaska cruise i definitely recommend a suite.

 

Why? We always do Suites but Suites for Alaskan cruises are so expensive we were considering balcony.

[Clarea]

Why? We always do Suites but Suites for Alaskan cruises are so expensive we were considering balcony.

On our Alaska cruise, we found that the JS staterooms were not that much more expensive than the balcony staterooms.

[goneclear]

Why? We always do Suites but Suites for Alaskan cruises are so expensive we were considering balcony.

 

Bear in mind this is my opinion. On Alaska cruises you spend more time inside. No out door pool side parties etc. Alaska is more about the scenery. A suite gives you so much more viewing room from inside.

[critterchick]

It all depends on what is important to you. There are other perks that were not mentioned here. Breakfast in Chops, is a major perk for us. Excellent service and cooked right there. The best breakfast!! Seperate seating at shows, so you don't have to get there really early for good seats. These things make it worth it for me.

 

Not every ship offers the suite breakfast in Chops - on Serenade they serve the regular MDR menu on Deck 5 instead of on Deck 4. The service was great but the food really wasn't that good, and the gatekeeper was a surly one who shouldn't have been in a hostess position, IMO.

 

As far as the crown lofts go, I'd stay in a lesser suite. On the Allure, we enjoyed a grand suite, owners suite and a crown loft suite. Personally I'd stay in the owners or grand again and skip the crown loft. The owners had the dining room table, a jetted tub, a much larger better equipped balcony and was just more comfy. I'm sure the crown loft appeals more to some folks, just not us. If I was choosing a suite, I'd save my money there.

 

When I've looked at the suite prices, I've usually found the L1 to be less expensive than the OS. I think the OS are spectacular, but we're going to try an L1 because we always enjoy touring them and I LOVE the idea of my own bathroom.

[Garavar]

On our Alaska cruise, we found that the JS staterooms were not that much more expensive than the balcony staterooms.

 

I am trying to book Alaska right now and there is about 1K per person difference between Balcony and JS. Plus we would want GS not JS if we were to do a suite for 7 days.

 

But the prices are ridiculously high compared to Caribbean 7 days

 

ie 7 Days New Orleans, Louisiana is 1.1K per person for suite, while Balcony is $579 per person

 

7 days Alaska is 2K per person for JS and 1.2K for Balcony.

[Garavar]

Bear in mind this is my opinion. On Alaska cruises you spend more time inside. No out door pool side parties etc. Alaska is more about the scenery. A suite gives you so much more viewing room from inside.

 

Good point, but wouldn't the Balcony on Balcony room be similar to JS? I've only sailed JS+ or higher. I was in a Balcony once in 2006 but I don't remember the size difference. Just curious why you said you would prefer the suite over a balcony.

 

Regardless though if it is significantly smaller that is not to say you cant sit in a lounge chair by the pool and enjoy the view, right? My girlfriend and I love the cold so if we booked we would be out on the top decks all day. We have vacation houses in Michigan and Maine and we only go in the winter haha.

[Clarea]

I am trying to book Alaska right now and there is about 1K per person difference between Balcony and JS. Plus we would want GS not JS if we were to do a suite for 7 days.

 

But the prices are ridiculously high compared to Caribbean 7 days

 

ie 7 Days New Orleans, Louisiana is 1.1K per person for suite, while Balcony is $579 per person

 

7 days Alaska is 2K per person for JS and 1.2K for Balcony.

For our cruise, price price difference was about $200pp between a balcony and a JS.

[setsail]

Sure they are. That's why they are on every ship, if no one booked them, they would not be there

[Garavar]

For our cruise, price price difference was about $200pp between a balcony and a JS.

 

You got lucky

[goneclear]

Good point, but wouldn't the Balcony on Balcony room be similar to JS? I've only sailed JS+ or higher. I was in a Balcony once in 2006 but I don't remember the size difference. Just curious why you said you would prefer the suite over a balcony.

 

Regardless though if it is significantly smaller that is not to say you cant sit in a lounge chair by the pool and enjoy the view, right? My girlfriend and I love the cold so if we booked we would be out on the top decks all day. We have vacation houses in Michigan and Maine and we only go in the winter haha.

 

We sailed in GS on Alaska sailings. They gives you enough room to set up for dinner in room while viewing the inside passage etc. you get to order of the Dinner menu if in GS. I guess its just that on an Alaska cruise we spend more time in the room and the extra space is nice together with the extra glass area for viewing outside. I live in the Caribbean so you wont find me on the balcony to often but do love to enjoy the scenery.

[Garavar]

Ahhh, you are making it tough now, was really going to book a Balcony instead of GS. Now I am torn

[MichaelCMTX]

For our cruise, price price difference was about $200pp between a balcony and a JS.

 

The economics get so weird. There was one sailing I looked at (I believe one of those wacky Jewel trips on the West Coast) where a JS cost a couple hundred more than a GS. A well-known price tracker site has the GS on our upcoming IOS trap $5 more than an OS. On our trip on Serenade an OS was only about $200 more than a GS. That's $200 total, not per person, but that OS was H-U-G-E. Never again unless we get as good a deal.

 

I'm just not one of those who thinks that the destination is the vacation and the cabin is simply a place to sleep. I've got a co-worker who basically sees the ship as transportation to where they'll be diving. It's like when we travel and rent a car:I don't drive an econobox at home, I'm sure not going to drive one when I'm trying to enjoy a vacation.

 

We're still going to be working for a couple more decades so it'll be quite some time before we're going on more than one cruise a year, let alone more than that. I know it's been said "I can book x cruises for what we paid for a suite" or "we will do a suite for special occasions." Our one cruise a year is our special occasion, that's Christmas, New Years and all the holidays for us, and it is "just that one cruise" so not as though we feel we wasted 4 or 5 trips in an oceanview or balcony. Not going to get 5 weeks off from work.

 

Now that said, we also pick a reasonably-priced time of year to book, do our shopping, book well in advance, and have never once regretted what we paid and only hated how early when looking at that "countdown to your next cruise" and seeing as many as 450 days on it. Ouch. OK, Hawaii/Radiance was a pretty stiff bill to pay, but what an awesome trip and what fascinating folks we met in the CL.

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

Ahhh, you are making it tough now, was really going to book a Balcony instead of GS. Now I am torn

 

We did an Alaska cruise on the Radiance this past June. We had a balcony and had an amazing time. We really didn't spend that much time in our room were we felt we needed a suite, but the time we did use the balcony, it was great. If we weren't off the ship in port, we would sit in one of the lounges (Schooner Bar, Colony Club, Champagne Bar) and enjoy the views through the large windows.

[jules815]

Add me to that list. We all still work so we make that one or two vacations a year count!!

 

This is what we've decided. We've recently become empty nesters (no more college tuition!) and plan on one cruise a year, probably in the fall while fares are lower. We had our first JS on FOS this past September and we really liked that room a lot. We noticed the "gold card holder" signs around the ship, saw breakfast happening in Portofino, lunch seating in Chops, etc. and my husband questioned me about it. We're in our 50's, and both work crazy long hours. I'm sure when we retire, we won't be booking suites, but for now we might as well enjoy it.

 

We're booked again for next September on FOS and taking it up a notch to a full suite. :)

[SissasMomE]

We have sailed exclusively in suites - in the early years of cruising it was JS's, and in the past 5 or so years, almost always Owners Suites, and even the Royal Suite last Feb on the Adventure (a paid upgrade). We are far from suite snobs, we just value the extra space and tend to spend time in our suite because we have been to all of the ports many, many times. The perk I especially appreciate is the reserved pool deck seating - it's worth it's weight in gold on a sea day when 3000 people are scrambling for chairs in the sun. I guess everyone has their own reasons for what they book. At the end of the day, you just book what you will be happy with :):o

 

Where is the reserved pool deck seating? We are looking at an Owner's Suite on the NOS. Is that shower really as small as it looks in the pictures??

[Clarea]

Where is the reserved pool deck seating? We are looking at an Owner's Suite on the NOS. Is that shower really as small as it looks in the pictures??

The reserved pool deck seating is on the terraced section between decks 11 and 12 near the pool bar and sky bar.