Cabin D732 Diamond Princess - "totally exposed"?

[cf2404]

I have just read something on the reviews on this site about the cabin above and it says that mini suites on Dolphin deck (which D732 is) have the balconies "totally exposed" and aren't really private. I'm panicking now as we are in this cabin in May. Does anyone know how to interpret this or anyone got any photos?

[cloverseeker]

We were booked originally on the Dolphin deck of the Sapphire and found out (by reading forums & reviews) that the Dolphin deck of the Sapphire & the Diamond stick out more than the decks above and that exposes the balcony's and leaves them uncovered. Hope that helps. Enjoy your cruise.

[Pam in CA]

Yes, D732's balcony is 100% uncovered. All of the Dolphin deck cabins, except for the aft cabins, are larger, but uncovered. The design of the Grand-class ships is well-known as the Grand has been in service for many years: the decks are tiered except for Baja, which is directly under Aloha. None of the Grand-class ships are "straight-sided."

 

None of the balconies are completely private except perhaps the aft balconies; even the covered balconies. There are two staff on the Bridge with binoculars, one on each side, constantly monitoring 24/7 for possible fire. This is in response to the Star fire last year. Also, the balconies are all open with dividers rather than cut from the hull: anyone standing on their balcony at the railing can, without even meaning to, look into the balconies next to them.

[Giorgi-one]

Yes, D732's balcony is 100% uncovered. All of the Dolphin deck cabins, except for the aft cabins, are larger, but uncovered. The design of the Grand-class ships is well-known as the Grand has been in service for many years: the decks are tiered except for Baja, which is directly under Aloha. None of the Grand-class ships are "straight-sided."

 

None of the balconies are completely private except perhaps the aft balconies; even the covered balconies. There are two staff on the Bridge with binoculars, one on each side, constantly monitoring 24/7 for possible fire. This is in response to the Star fire last year. Also, the balconies are all open with dividers rather than cut from the hull: anyone standing on their balcony at the railing can, without even meaning to, look into the balconies next to them.

 

Minisuite balconies on the Emerald Deck at the rear of the ship are totally covered. Caribe Deck balcony cabins are half covered.

[sun&sea]

I have just read something on the reviews on this site about the cabin above and it says that mini suites on Dolphin deck (which D732 is) have the balconies "totally exposed" and aren't really private. I'm panicking now as we are in this cabin in May. Does anyone know how to interpret this or anyone got any photos?

 

Somehow when you have the minis in the Dolphin deck, it doesn't "feel" exposed. However, you are!!!

 

Maybe this picture will help explain.

[cf2404]

Thanks for the replies and the great photo - I totally get it now!

[Tizzy]

We have recently returned from a Cruise on the Crown Princess.

We did not like the exposed balconies at all. It seems a strange design as most people like a bit of privacy.

Unfortunately we had a very inconsiderate person above us and I had cigar ash dropped on me while I was sunbathing and we had several sweet papers to clean up every morning.

I just read a review from someone saying you had to be GRUMPY not to enjoy a cruise on the Crown. We are not grumpy at all but the manners of some of our fellow cruisers left a lot to be desired. We were embarrassed by the way some people spoke to the staff. It doesn't cost a penny to be kind to people but we were glad to get off this particular ship. It was a beautiful ship and the staff were first class but the exposed balconies weren't for us and we were disappointed by the food which was not as good as on other cruises we have been on.

[smoothdancer]

I dont know this is true of all of the ships, but today here is what I learned about the Diamond. I considerd booking a category AD mini suite instead of an AC mini suite so I could get an aft covered balcony. The travel agent told me that you could only get a guarantee for category AD and so there is no guarantee that you would not be upgraded, and get a covered balcony.

 

Even stranger, on our sailing a special was being offered on the AC's and the AD's were actually more expensive... We went with the AC... We had an exposed balcony on the Golden, and they are not as bad as they sound.

[jwave]

sun&sea:

 

Which ship were you on? The chairs and tables look different to me. Perhaps they have been changed? I have been on the Grand and Star, is this picture from one of those?

[sun&sea]

The Crown. Good eye!

 

Janet

[Kendallkat2]

We also had an exposed balcony on the Star and didn't like it at all. I don't like people peering down on us while sitting on it. A balcony on a ship is a must for us. I really think Princess needs to do something about it for privacy. I don't know what they could do but somehow put up some sort of covering over them. I will never book a mini-suite on Princess again. We also don't like the regular balconies on Princess because the rooms have no sofa.

 

So I guess we just won't be using Princess again. We are looking into a Carnival or Norwegian cruise now.

 

Beth

[LUCY55]

Hmm, maybe the Baja will be fine. When we finally book a cruise there usually isn't much choice left. By the time I figured out that the Carib deck was quite desirable there were no rooms available. I booked the Baja because it has cabins below and above. Should be quiet. Whether it was covered or not was not an issue even considered. Interesting to hear all of your comments.

[Pam in CA]

I dont know this is true of all of the ships, but today here is what I learned about the Diamond. I considerd booking a category AD mini suite instead of an AC mini suite so I could get an aft covered balcony. The travel agent told me that you could only get a guarantee for category AD and so there is no guarantee that you would not be upgraded, and get a covered balcony.

 

Even stranger, on our sailing a special was being offered on the AC's and the AD's were actually more expensive... We went with the AC... We had an exposed balcony on the Golden, and they are not as bad as they sound.

Yes, the ADs are on Emerald deck and fully covered. There are very few of these mini-suites which is why they are more expensive. They used to be much less-expensive. And yes, if you have a GTY, you can be upgraded and not get the AD.

[Pam in CA]

sun&sea:

 

Which ship were you on? The chairs and tables look different to me. Perhaps they have been changed? I have been on the Grand and Star, is this picture from one of those?

The chairs and tables on all of the ships have been changed and are now fire-retardant, due to the Star fire last year.

 

Here are photos of the balcony and chairs/tables in D728 on my recent Golden cruise.

[Mrs_Tiki]

Like many previous posters, we did not enjoy the "exposed" balconies on the Dolphin deck of these ships. We were on the Diamond last week and had a Caribe deck stateroom. (Not a mini-suite, though.) IMHO, Caribe balconies are the best of both worlds ~ half covered, half exposed. In addition to providing some privacy, it also provided much-needed shade. Four chairs (two were especially comfortable adjustable types) and a table were very useful.

 

You do give up the extra room inside that you would get in the mini-suite, though. Just depends where you enjoy spending your time, I guess.

[JKTriplets]

Please post back with your thoughts after your cruise. We've just booked D732 and D734 for August and I'd love to hear how it worked out for you.

[spongerob]

We've booked minisuites on Grand-class ships for most of our cruises and have never found that the exposed balcony has been a problem. Okay, once, when a family two or three decks up had a very loud fight one morning. Most of the time you don't see anyone else out, and when you do, it's usually arriving or leaving from a port. The vast majority of people are considerate and do not exhibit intrusive behavior.

[Casshew]

If you watch this

taken from the Lido Deck, you can see how the Dolphin/Caribe Balconies are visible.

[ladypalmtree]

We were in a Dolphin mini suite last April..and Again tomorrow..so we loved it...Did not bother us, everyone was polite. We love the extra space and perks of the mini. We mostly used the balcony to dry wet suits and look at the sea during the day..I love to sit out there at night and read..it was lovely, a glass of wine and a good book..and peace and harmony..I do not get that at home.........relax and enjoy..unless you were planning on nude sunbathing..you will be fine..:rolleyes:

[drjochen]

I have just read something on the reviews on this site about the cabin above and it says that mini suites on Dolphin deck (which D732 is) have the balconies "totally exposed" and aren't really private. I'm panicking now as we are in this cabin in May. Does anyone know how to interpret this or anyone got any photos?

 

Yeah, its great. They are uncovered and you can actually see the sky and the sun. We loved it!

[KAWS]

If you watch this

taken from the Lido Deck, you can see how the Dolphin/Caribe Balconies are visible.

 

Thanks for that video - that was great! Gave us a really good idea of what the staterooms look like. We're on an aft Dolphin deck so I believe that means fully covered but this video shows me how big those decks are going to be, so I'm pumped!

 

Thanks again.

 

Kim