Riviera Deck Suites - pros and cons

[Tropical Fish Biz]

What can anyone tell me about the suites on the Riviera Deck on the Emerald. I've heard from others that the noise from the pool deck above is a serious problem.

 

Does anyone have any thoughts, positive or otherwise?

[Colo Cruiser]

Yes they are a problem. Chair dragging at all hours of the night and day. :)

[kcb]

Every few times this comes up, I post my usual comment:

You will get differing advice. You will find some that report noise from the deck above, and others will not mention any. Some will report the noise as "no big deal."

 

We were in Caribbean Princess PH R402 December 2005, and I can most assuredly report that the noise will be a problem. People moving around during the day, kids running back and forth at night, crew cleaning the deck in the wee hours and then preparing the deck for use early in the morning. The chair scraping is present with all of these activities.

 

As I have stated in other posts, why risk a week of vacation on the chance that the noise may or may not bother you?

 

Pick another deck! Good Luck.

[vince_g]

Those are the suites Princess uses for upgrades, because they don't sell as well as the aft suites. I personally would not book it, but wouldn't turn it down if I received it as an upgrade.

[CrusinAgain]

Yes we were upgraded to that deck and thought it was great but it was constant dragging of those chairs from early morning until when they stopped cleaning the deck during the night. Unless you can go to sleep fast and noise doesn't bother you, you will not like this deck.

[MaryPoppinz]

We considered one on our last cruise, but I just could not live with the possibility of 10 nights of disrupted sleep. Actually, we reconsider them every trip, and come to the same conclusion.

 

I can't imagine what they were thinking positioning the nicest cabins in the poorest location. They must get SO many complaints from unsuspecting passengers.

[kcb]

Those are the suites Princess uses for upgrades, because they don't sell as well as the aft suites. I personally would not book it, but wouldn't turn it down if I received it as an upgrade.

 

After our experience, I would turn it down, and I wouldn't even take one for free...

 

Nothing is worth that aggravation!!!

[whale-watcher]

funny that these are higher priced cabins than the aft VS suites (we would choose the aft location even if noise was not an issue, however)

[Pam in CA]

I would never book a cabin under a public deck. I've done it and the noise, even if it's not consistent, is aggravating and sleep-disturbing. All it takes is one loud noise at 5AM to wake you up. Or, high heels pounding at Midnight. Not worth the money.

[kcb]

I would never book a cabin under a public deck. I've done it and the noise, even if it's not consistent, is aggravating and sleep-disturbing. All it takes is one loud noise at 5AM to wake you up. Or, high heels pounding at Midnight. Not worth the money.

 

...Almost fully agreed! I'd never book a cabin under a public deck on Princess ever again.

 

We've had similar locations on several RCI ships, and never had a problem!

 

But, by the other responses in this thread (and MANY others), I'm guessing the shipyards that Princess uses just can't get it right.

[whale-watcher]

...Almost fully agreed! I'd never book a cabin under a public deck on Princess ever again.

 

We've had similar locations on several RCI ships, and never had a problem!

 

But, by the other responses in this thread (and MANY others), I'm guessing the shipyards that Princess uses just can't get it right.

We noticed no difference in the noise level from above on either the coral princess aloha deck or the enchantment of the seas deck 8...noticable but not enough to keep us awake.

[kcb]

We noticed no difference in the noise level from above on either the coral princess aloha deck or the enchantment of the seas deck 8...noticable but not enough to keep us awake.

 

Fair enough! Maybe, just maybe, the Coral was built at a different yard than the Princess Grand-class ships.

 

But, I wouldn't risk it! I wouldn't chance another week of vacation on any Princess ship below a public deck. Not after our experience. Fool me once, shame on you! Fool me twice...

 

Not a chance!!!

[Pam in CA]

...Almost fully agreed! I'd never book a cabin under a public deck on Princess ever again.

 

We've had similar locations on several RCI ships, and never had a problem! Actually, one of my worst experiences was on an RCI ship so it pretty much happens on all ships.

 

But, by the other responses in this thread (and MANY others), I'm guessing the shipyards that Princess uses just can't get it right.

Princess uses the same shipyards as many other cruiselines so I don't think that has anything to do with it. There are only a few shipyards that build cruise ships. I suspect it has more to do with the itinerary and weather where people might tend to be outside on deck earlier in the morning and late at night on some cruises. If it's too cold to be outside, such as on my Golden Princess cruise last February, then the loungers won't be put out and there would be minimal noise. On my very recent Royal Princess cruise, I was on Deck 4, underneath the Deck 5 promenade and I never heard any noise. But then it was pretty darned chilly outside so few were on deck.

[kcb]

Princess uses the same shipyards as many other cruiselines so I don't think that has anything to do with it.

 

Not true. Princess builds the Grand-class in Italy, whereas RCI builds in Finland & Germany.

 

I suspect it has more to do with the itinerary and weather where people might tend to be outside on deck earlier in the morning and late at night on some cruises.

 

Again, not true. A majority of our cruises are on similar Caribbean itineraries. In fact, every cruise where we were below a public deck was in the Caribbean. So, you can expect that the use of the public decks would differ very little from trip to trip. With that being said, our experience leads me back to the individual shipyard being responsible for how the ship is built/insulated.

[Colo Cruiser]

Not true. Princess builds the Grand-class in Italy, whereas RCI builds in Finland & Germany.

 

Not true, Diamond/Sapphire were built in Japan. :rolleyes:

[kcb]

Not true, Diamond/Sapphire were built in Japan.

 

True. But still, not the same yards as where RCI builds.

 

And, as the OP was asking about the Riviera deck on the Emerald, my point is that I believe the yards apparently have a lot to do with how well the ship insulates noise from public decks above. I have not researched the Diamond or Sapphire, but the Caribbean, Crown & Emerald Princess all have enough complaints to make me stay far, far away from those decks.

 

Pam's note above is the first I've heard of trouble from above on Royal Caribbean. Even though I have not had trouble in several experiences on RCI, her note now makes me suspicious about RCI's ships. My research will now take on more diligence on that line, as well.

[fathercop]

We were booked into a Riviera suite on the CB one year. Like the other posters stated: noise, chairs, noise, dragging, noise, music, chairs, dragging, noise! It calmed down a bit at nite, but you could hear the deck crew cleaning at night. I do know that some suites on that deck are under Lido staterooms. Those cabins do not have the problem of noise. Never, been in a Lido cabin, so I wonder if they experience the samething.

[Pam in CA]

Not true. Princess builds the Grand-class in Italy, whereas RCI builds in Finland & Germany. Actually, the "Grand-Class" ships have been built in yards in Japan, France and Italy, and except for Japan, these same yards have built ships for Cunard, Carnival, MSC, Oceana, Seabourne, etc. Ships are built to very exact engineering specifications and where the ship is built should have little to do with whether there's more insulation when built in one shipyard or another. As mentioned, my worst experience with noise was on RCI's Nordic Empress (before it was extended to become the Empress of the Seas) where I heard not only noise from above but constantly from cabins on both sides. I heard not only the TVs in both cabins but people talking. The acoustics were horrible. I also experienced a lot of noise from the cabins next to me while on the Explorer of the Seas.

 

Again, not true. A majority of our cruises are on similar Caribbean itineraries. In fact, every cruise where we were below a public deck was in the Caribbean. So, you can expect that the use of the public decks would differ very little from trip to trip. With that being said, our experience leads me back to the individual shipyard being responsible for how the ship is built/insulated.

My RCI noise problems were all on Caribbean cruises but logic would tell you that on colder climate cruises, less people outside would result in less noise.

[whale-watcher]

We noticed no difference in the noise level from above on either the coral princess aloha deck or the enchantment of the seas deck 8...noticable but not enough to keep us awake.

 

My RCI noise problems were all on Caribbean cruises but logic would tell you that on colder climate cruises, less people outside would result in less noise.

the only two times we had cabins below public decks were in alaska and new england...I suspect that is why we only experienced minimal noise. We have cabins on deck 12 of the Pride of America in January, and there is a public deck right above us...and the weather should be much warmer in Hawaii:eek:

[Tropical Fish Biz]

Thanks for the info.

 

We are actually booked in a Dolphin deck mini, but on our last cruise on the Diamond, we were upgraded to a PH suite on the Caribe deck. It was so great, but it had cabins above and below. We are just planning ahead on whether we would accept an upgrade to the Riviera deck if it were offered. I would never pay for it, and it sounds like I probably wouldn't want it if it were given to me. Too bad...cruising in a suite is really sweet!