balcony vs jr suite

[KJK1313]

can anyone give me info on balcony rooms? i have stayed in interior & jr suites but was debating balcony vs jr suite. there is a $900.00 difference.:confused:

[jrm9999]

I have been in both a balcony and jr. suite. The balcony was more than adequate, but I personally like the Jr. Suite for a bit of extra room. If we are on a port intensive cruise I would pick the balcony because we would be using the room less. If there are more sea days then the Jr. Suite as I spend time on the balcony and such on sea days.

[cb at sea]

Good advice. I guess it is a matter of personal preference. I, personally, like the space of a JS, not to mention a bathtub. My parents tho, are never in their room, except to sleep and shower (no tub for them!) and usually book an inside room and use the $$$ elsewhere!

[lookin4fun@sea]

$900.00 difference??? I thought it was usually $300. per person extra for a jr. suite vs. a balcony room!

[Captain Crunch]

A Jr Suite is almost 1/3 larger. I couldn't imagine being in a room where the wall almost touches the foot of the bed.

[dougp26364]

We've been in E1, D1 and JS cabins. Of course I prefer the JS cabin but not for $900 more. We recently spent 12 nights in an E1 and did just fine.

 

You'll be missing the bathtub and the extra room in the sitting area but not much more. I have pictures of the E1 we had on Brilliance and the JS we had on Explorer and Enchantment if you want to compare them. You can find them in the links in my signature below.

 

For $900 difference, I'd be sailing in the balcony rather than the JS but, that's just what I'd do. Everyone is different.

[Giorgi-one]

A Jr Suite is almost 1/3 larger. I couldn't imagine being in a room where the wall almost touches the foot of the bed.

 

Imagine being in that situation. I would rather go to work.

[SheltieLady]

We booked a JS rather than Superior Ocean View for our 8 night cruise on the Jewel price difference was I think $230.00 pp or maybe $280.00pp so we felt it was worth paying.

 

Christine

[Captain Crunch]

Imagine being in that situation. I would rather go to work.

 

I'd rather spend my money elsewhere, but it's a personal decision. I enjoy spending time in my cabin or room or suite or whatever the correct terminology is. A couple of hours before dinner or some afternoon delight is nice.

 

When taking a vacation on a cruise on a cruise there are tradeoffs you make. Room size, meal quality, crowded public facilities are all tradeoffs you make. It what extent things are important is how you make decisions. For us, it's $900 well spent. Others have no qualms about smaller interior cabins.

 

Some people are Red Roof Inn, Some are Marriot and some are Four Seasons. Too their own.

 

To the OP, we find the expense well worth it.

[critterchick]

$900.00 difference??? I thought it was usually $300. per person extra for a jr. suite vs. a balcony room!

 

The OP didn't say per person, but also didn't say what itinerary. On the Northern European Jewel cruises, it's as much as $1200 pp.

 

We love the JS, and actually have never stayed in a lower category except for our first cruise in an oceanview on the Nordic Empress. That was cozy, but we were on our honeymoon and DH's first non-Navy cruise, so it was just fine with us. We want to do that Northern European trip, though, and I just can't see spending that kind of money for a JS on such a port-intensive trip. There are 4 sea days, but I think we'll be quite comfortable in a D-1.

 

The Princess minisuites have beds that "almost" touch the wall. There's about 3 feet of clearance. Fortunately, that's plenty of space for us, so I think we could make do with a similar layout on RCI. But hotelwise, I'm totally Luxury Collection!

[ILoveScotland]

I've posted this on the Roll Call thread but will do the same here to get others' opinions as well.

 

DH and I are booked in an E-1 for the 11/07 Transatlantic cruise on the Brilliance, but I'm thinking about upgrading to a Jr. Suite. If it were a 7 day port intensive cruise I wouldn't consider an upgrade, but since we'll have lots of wonderful sea days, I am.

 

My question is this: Aside from the negative of the additional cost, what are the pros and cons of the E-1 and Jr. Suite? We don't have much cruising experience to know the answer to this question.

 

Thanks.

[critterchick]

I don't know whether this is a pro or a con for you, but consider this: in the JS, the sitting area is next to the windows. In the D-1s (and I think all the balcony cabins, but I'm not sure), the bed is next to the window. I prefer the first arrangement.I think that qualifies as splitting hairs, but if you're planning on spending a lot of time in your cabin on sea days, then sitting by the window would beat sleeping by it for me.

 

I don't see any advantage to the E-1 except for the money aspect, although perhaps cabin location is important to you - All of the JS cabins are on Deck 10, so if you'd rather be lower on the ship, the E-1 would work better.

 

The JS should get you priority boarding (no other suite perks, though) and will get you an extra cruise credit in your C&A account, so you'll get three for the transatlantic instead of the 2 you'd get in the E-1. Space, walk-in closet, slightly larger balcony.

[ILoveScotland]

I don't know whether this is a pro or a con for you, but consider this: in the JS, the sitting area is next to the windows. In the D-1s (and I think all the balcony cabins, but I'm not sure), the bed is next to the window. I prefer the first arrangement.I think that qualifies as splitting hairs, but if you're planning on spending a lot of time in your cabin on sea days, then sitting by the window would beat sleeping by it for me.

 

I don't see any advantage to the E-1 except for the money aspect, although perhaps cabin location is important to you - All of the JS cabins are on Deck 10, so if you'd rather be lower on the ship, the E-1 would work better.

 

The JS should get you priority boarding (no other suite perks, though) and will get you an extra cruise credit in your C&A account, so you'll get three for the transatlantic instead of the 2 you'd get in the E-1. Space, walk-in closet, slightly larger balcony.

 

Our E-1 is on Deck 10, so that's not an issue. I didn't know about the extra cruise credit, but I had noticed the sitting area was next to the window. Good information to go into the decision hopper. Thanks.