if we upgrade/change to a balcony on CB..

[LSKC]

we need a quad room (we are 2 adults, 2 kids 4,6yrs old).

if we are paying that much more i would want a covered balcony with some privacy since we would be sitting out on it at night and before breakfast, etc.

 

so... where are these located.

we'd like to book a room mid-ship since we've never cruised before and aren't totally sure how the motion sickness may factor in. i'd rather stay were there is little motion JUST IN CASE :)

 

Caribean Princess

going in Nov 07. booked already but considering changing from inside room quad to balcony quad. additional cost to us though is: $943.00

[spongerob]

This ship has few fully-covered balconies. The balconies on Caribe deck are large and partially covered. If memory serves, most of the quads are located fore or aft, not amidship. There are also a few minisuites on Emerald with fully covered balconies.

 

You can find deck plans at Princess.com.

[Pam in CA]

Except for aft balconies, the only fully-covered balconies on the Caribbean Princess are on Riviera, Aloha and Baja decks. And, these balconies are quite small -- just big enough for a couple of chairs and a small table, and too small for a family of four. You might consider a Caribe deck balcony cabin which is quite a bit larger and is half-covered, half-uncovered.

 

Keep in mind that except for the balconies on the smaller ships where the balconies are "cut out" of the hull and aft balconies, you don't have true privacy since there are just dividers and anyone relaxing by their railing can see into your balcony by just looking around and without being nosey. Also, there is staff on the Bridge, with binoculars, 24/7 watching the balconies. This was put into place after the Star fire as a safety precaution.

[cherylandtk]

Caution: Partial Thread Hijack ahead:

Pam (or anyone else who knows), Do you know if the 24 hr Firewatch is going to remain in place after the new furniture and sprinkler systems are installed? I was curious if the watch was part of the new policy or just a short-term temporary measure until the retrofits are in place.

 

And now, back to the original topic.

 

As mentioned, there is very limited availability of quad balcony cabins; a total of 10 rooms on Riviera, Aloha and Baja combined. 12 on Caribe. I agree with the suggestions to go for the largest balcony rooms on Caribe,but that is category BA and only you can decide if the cost is worth the benefit to you.

[flarad]

I don't know if you're interested but we booked two side-by-side balcony rooms for the same price as one quad. There is not a door between but the balcony seperators move. With a teen and an 11 year-old we just plan to do the son with dad, daughter with mom thing. I'ts not like there's any privacy in a cabin with a family anyway :D

[tvaud]

I don't know if you're interested but we booked two side-by-side balcony rooms for the same price as one quad. There is not a door between but the balcony seperators move. With a teen and an 11 year-old we just plan to do the son with dad, daughter with mom thing. I'ts not like there's any privacy in a cabin with a family anyway :D

 

 

...OR, book a balcony cabin with an inside cabin that is directly across the hall...to save even more $$.:D Put the kiddies in the inside cabin with a baby monitor, so you can hear them in your cabin. This way, Mom and Dad can have a little private time;)

[melmarine]

The open balconies on these ships are a problem for me too. When my kids were younger we sailed Grand Princess in a mini suite on Dolphin deck. The balcony, although huge, was a huge and I mean huge disappointment. There was no privacy at all and it was always covered with cigarette butts in the morning. I always said that if I booked again I would only book on Emerald Deck where the mini suites to the aft have completely covered balconies. For this reason I have not sailed princess ships for over 5 years. This year we decided our children, 13 and 16, were big enough for their own cabin so we booked side by side rooms BA category, on the Caribe deck. I was told the balcony dividers open and I'm really hoping this is true. We are giving Princess another try in March on the Caribbean Princess. We got a really great rate (about $700 plus tax Canadian $ per person). I hope I won't be disappointed. The balconies are the most important aspect of a cruise to me and since I make the choice of which ship we sail, it's either do or die for Princess.

[chasetf]

...OR, book a balcony cabin with an inside cabin that is directly across the hall...to save even more $$.:D Put the kiddies in the inside cabin with a baby monitor, so you can hear them in your cabin. This way, Mom and Dad can have a little private time;)

You really are serious about putting a 4 yr old and 6 yr old in a cabin by themselves for the entire night.....with only a baby monitor.....:confused: :confused: :confused:

[tvaud]

You really are serious about putting a 4 yr old and 6 yr old in a cabin by themselves for the entire night.....with only a baby monitor.....:confused: :confused: :confused:

 

 

Why not? They sleep in their own rooms at home, don't they? No one can get in without a key. The parents have the baby monitor so they can hear everything going on in the cabin. It would only be for sleeping. What's the difference if they are sleeping at home in their own room or on a ship?

 

Ok, if this option is so offensive, then just book a mini suite. Let the kids sleep on the pull out sofa. After they fall asleep, the parents can have some privacy.

[cruzwkids]

We just got back from the CB with two kids in a quad cabin -- they're four and five. It was an inside cabin, but my parents had a balcony room right across the hall, which was wonderful. The quad was tight, but that was fine for sleeping. But we were glad to have their balcony across the hall where we could have a drink with my parents while the kids watched TV before dinner.

 

The kids' program is wonderful if you're interested. They had so much fun, and by the third day they never wanted to leave the Fun Zone.

[pg.]

I would never put a 4 and 6 yr old alone in a cabin across the hall, baby monitor or not. Sheesh, some parents really put themselves first. ( I realize OP did not suggest this)

Once the kids are older( say over 10 ) then that is a good solution, but, a FOUR yr old, what are people thinking!

If you are able it is worth it to get a balcony on the Caribe deck, the balcony for most decks is 9ft x 5 ft,some covered completely , some completely open, but on the Caribe deck the balcony is 9 ft x 9ft. plus it is half covered and half uncovered. Best of both worlds and more SPACE!

[LSKC]

yes, just want to clarify that the OP (me :)) is not suggesting i put my kids in a seperate room.

that isn't an option for me, they will be with me at all times when not in the Kids Zone. Too many bad things could happen. Ack. it makes me nerveous just thinking about it.

i would never trust my 6 & 4 year old to know what to do if someone grabbed them when they were coming out of their own room (to come to ours) or someone knocked on their door. it just isn't a safe option in my opinion.

 

thank you for all your suggestions and tips on balcony. i'm still hmmm'ing and hawww'ing over whether the additional $1000 is worth it for us 1st time cruisers who don't know any better than interior cabin :)

[pg.]

LSKC You do have good point, if you book a balcony for your first cruise you will never want to go back to an inside. I think the cruise itself will be so fun and novel as first timers that you could save a ton of money by booking an inside( and secretely hoping for an upgrade, not very likely) .

Do double check the price difference though, we booked an inside ( for our teens and a balcony( right across from them) and the difference was not very much.

 

Anyways, I love my balcony, but on our first cruise we did book an inside guarantee, which was upgraded to an outside. On our second cruise we booked an outside guarantee which was upgraded to a balcony, and on our third we booked the lowest cat. of balcony and were upgraded to a higher cat of balcony( which really is no difference).

We now only book balconys as we are SPIOLED, LOL , ,but this time there will be no upgrade for us becuase we must keep together with our kids and they will upgrade one cabin but not the other, so we had to specify NO upgrades, ugh, that hurt, I'd sure like to try a minisuite! LOL

[pg.]

LSKC You do have good point, if you book a balcony for your first cruise you will never want to go back to an inside. I think the cruise itself will be so fun and novel as first timers that you could save a ton of money by booking an inside( and secretely hoping for an upgrade, not very likely) .

Do double check the price difference though, we booked an inside ( for our teens and a balcony( right across from them) and the difference was not very much.

 

Anyways, I love my balcony, but on our first cruise we did book an inside guarantee, which was upgraded to an outside. On our second cruise we booked an outside guarantee which was upgraded to a balcony, and on our third we booked the lowest cat. of balcony and were upgraded to a higher cat of balcony( which really is no difference).

We now only book balconys as we are SPIOLED, LOL , ,but this time there will be no upgrade for us becuase we must keep together with our kids and they will upgrade one cabin but not the other, so we had to specify NO upgrades, ugh, that hurt, I'd sure like to try a minisuite! LOL

[GloriaF]

nevermind - first there were 2 posts, then none.

[GloriaF]

LSKC, since you mentioned how disappointed you were with the Dolphin balcony, I wanted to clarify what was meant when you were told the balcony dividers opened - the DOOR in the divider can be unlocked, but the PARTITION will still be there. And sometimes I've noticed the doors don't stay in the open position - they don't lock, but they swing back and forth - so you may want to bring a bungee cord, duct tape, or a rope to tie the door in the open position.

 

Hope your cruise is a happy one with no disappointments!!

 

Have you looked into the cost of one mini-suite as compared to 2 balconies? With your children as young as they are, the sofa bed in the mini should be comfortable for them. I've heard the sofa bed is not comfortable for an adult. The room steward will fold the sofa out each evening and put it away each morning. In addition, if your children normally bathe in a bath tub, the mini will offer that whereas insides, outsides and balconies have showers only.

[lv2cruise2]

When we sailed with our kids we booked a mini suite as well as it gave us the extra room we needed with the kids as the other posted wrote. The balcony was not as large as on Caribe deck but it was still fine for us. One nice thing to think about if you dont do the mini suit is that the balony rooms have the beds against the wall and the two bunks will fold down from each side of the walls and you will have to walk around them at night when they are made up for sleep which may cause so bit of a problem for you something to think about. As for your inside soom the beds are at the back wall at all times so no problems walking into or around them.