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Balcony or mini suite??

vivalv66

By vivalv66,
in Princess Cruises

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Toto2Kansas

Toto2Kansas

Posted
Posted

There are a few things that the mini suites on Princess give you that the balcony cabins don't. You will have a full sized tub in the mini suite compared to a small shower in the balcony cabin. You will have a sitting area with sofa and comfortable chair in the mini suite where as in the balcony cabin you will have one desk chair or stool and one chair. You will have two TV's just in case you both are wanting to watch something different in the AM or when getting ready to do whatever.

 

Most times the prices are not that far apart, usually within a couple hundred dollars difference between the two. Sometimes you can get them for almost the same price.

 

Are they worth the extra? To us MOST DEFINITELY!

After cruising in several balcony cabins on Princess, the last time we both looked at each other and said, NEVER AGAIN, this is just way too small.

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bruce-r

bruce-r

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To add to that. If you are a family of 4 like us, a balcony's sleeping arrangements leave lots to be desired. The 2 twin beds can't be pushed together if the upper bunks are in use, so you end up with 2 twin bunk beds. In a mini, the twins get pushed together, the sofa is a single berth and there is a bunk that comes down out of the ceiling. That upper bunk was DD's almost favorite thing on our cruise :)

 

I wouldn't recommend anything less than a mini for a family of 4.

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regnig

regnig

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Also depends on the ship you will be sailing. If it is a "Sun Class" ship the mini-suites are the greatest. They compare to full suites on most other lines and if you can swing it they are the way to go. The bathrooms with full oversize jetted tub and glassed in shower alone make it worth the cost.

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hamptod

hamptod

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You guys are starting to make me rethink my balcony cabin on the caribe deck! After reading about how much bigger the balconys are and the fact that they are partially covered was the big selling point. However, reading about all the extra space makes me want to call the TA and tell her to go ahead an accept a complimentary upgrade if the upgrade fairy comes along.:D

 

There will be three of us in C518 on the Caribbean Princess. My DH and I love sitting out on the balcony, especially my hubby. We spend a lot of time there. Since my son is hardly in the room, we went for balcony space over cabin space. I hope we did the right thing.

 

My concern is that we would wind up on in a mini that is uncovered or not in a good location. Is there such a thing as a mini in a bad location?

Deborah

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Druke I

Druke I

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I agree with Larsen above - the mini-suites on the Sun class are great.

 

On the Coral and Grand class ships, they are really only a bit bigger than a regular balcony cabin, and in my opinion not nearly as nice as those on the Sun class ships.

 

Michael

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Lynda90

Lynda90

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If there are 3 of you sharing a cabin, there is no doubt in my mind that the mini is the way to go. The additional space makes a huge difference for 3 people. I personally do not think there is a bad location. Also, I have had both covered and uncovered balconies and I really saw no difference. Both are great. If you can be upgraded to a mini, definitely take it. Enjoy! :D

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AnnMorin

AnnMorin

Posted
Posted

I am totally confused here, we are going on the Star Princess in a BB as of right now cabin A429. Is that a small veranda? is it covered or uncovered? There are three of us should I switch to a mini suite? I was hoping that as it got closer to the cruise the mini suite price would come down as we are looking at Thanksgiving 2005 and I had to cut things close to get the BB cabin.

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Toto2Kansas

Toto2Kansas

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Ann-Sorry I can't help with the veranda size in the BB stateroom. I can tell you though that unless one of the people traveling with you is a child, that balcony cabin is going to be quite cramped for three adults.

Remember, the balcony cabins have two places to sit in the stateroom, a nice comfy chair and a desk chair or stool. There is no type of sitting area to speak of. Also, the bathroom is very tiny in the balcony cabins.

 

If there is any way possibly, a mini suite would be so much more comfortable for three people. Unless you spend almost no time in your cabin but to sleep and change clothes then it would probably be fine.

 

If you are traveiling over Thanksgiving, I doubt the prices will drop at all, in fact, they may even increase depending on demand.

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Toto2Kansas

Toto2Kansas

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All I can say is that IF it were me, I would definitely go for that mini suite. It will also afford you a sofa bed for your son to sleep on instead of a bunk type bed coming out of the wall. A bathtub, two televisions, sofa for during the day, and a ton more space. If you can find it in your budget, it would be a great assest to your cruising experience to book a mini suite instead of a balcony cabin. That way you won't all be bumping into each other with the minimal sq. footage the balcony cabins provide.

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Toto2Kansas

Toto2Kansas

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What we do is ask ourselves where on the ship we would like our cabin to be. By the elevators, away from the elvators, more traffic areas or less. Then we check to see which cabins are still available and then look them up on the deck plans.

 

Look above and below all of the suites on that deck and choose according to what is there. If there happens to be a club below or above a certain cabin, then that is one we shy away from as the noise can bleed through.

 

Other than that, they are all the same inside.

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csk

csk

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we were in a mini suite on the Diamond and it had a tub shower comb., but the extra room was great, loved the couch and the two tv. like everyone said, well worth the extra $$., in our case we booked just a guarantee, and was cheaper than a balcony,

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Lynda90

Lynda90

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Ann,

 

You will not be happy with 3 people in one small cabin. I have been in that situation before and you will be stepping over each other. I will never do it again. A mini-suite is really the only comfortable choice for 3 (other than a full suite). I do not feel you will enjoy your cruising experience if the 3 of you are crammed into a standard cabin. Please try to talk DH into it. The extra $400 for 3 will be worth it in the long run. Try to skimp somewhere else to make up for it. I don't think the location should be an issue for you. I always book the cheapest mini-suite category and usually get bumped up a notch or two. But even if I didn't, the location is not important to me, but the comfort of the cabin is.

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