Cruise Virgin! Have questions....

[daughterofsarah77]

Hi, my husband and I are looking to book our first cruise sometime in fall/early winter of 2008 and leaning towards Princess. It sounds like the best fit for us. Before deciding on this, I had planned on looking for the best deal out there and booking that...but I see all Cruise lines are not created equally for all! I still have a few questions....

1. My sister and her husband cruised Princess and my understanding is they would be enrolled in their frequent cruiser program after their first cruise. On their website it says that if they refer us, we get a discount...anyone know how much that usually is? Do I get that discount just booking through Princess, or do you get that through a TA?

 

2. In the brochure, it mentions early booking discount and quotes rates, but does not really seem to specify what qualifies as "early booking"...any ideas on this? It seems then the brochure would have different rates than what I am getting online from them?

 

3. Someone give me the lowdown of what decks/areas to avoid when it comes to balcony rooms? I remember seeing a few things about noise issues,lack of privacy on balconies, and areas best to be in if you may get sea sick...

 

4. We are looking at Western Caribbean...it looks like temps that time of year are in the 70's....is that warm enough if you plan to swim, sunbathe...??

 

Any other suggestions and tips are appreciated : ) Thanks!

[chrysalis]

The referral discount is $25 per person....for them and for you...and it does not matter whether you book thru an agent or thru Princess.

 

No one pays the brochure price...there are many discount travel agents that advertise on this website, check out their prices.

 

It is hard to suggest decks or cabins to avoid when you do not mention the ship you might be travelling on.

 

Yes, it will be warm enough to swim and sunbath.

[seagarsmoker]

1. answered above

 

2. answered above

 

3. The cabins in the middle of the ship have less movement, so you pay more for them. We always get aft cabins (or cabins in the back) as we like the 'roll' feeling.

 

4. Temps in the Caribbean will actually be in the 83 - 90 degree area.

[WISH84]

If you have a travel agent you use and are comfortable with, I would stick with them. I've spent many hours on the web looking for great deals and most are always within a few dollars of each other. So in my opinion, regardless of the rate (presuming they are all close) I would rather pay a few extra $$$ to have the security of knowing who I'm dealing with.

 

Regarding the cabin selection: Most will tell you that those cabins located in the aft section of the ship (rear end) will help you FEEL the motion of seas and therefore if you are prone to sea sickness (or think you may be) then purchasing a cabin in the middle section of the ship would be best for you. Also, most of the mini-suites are on the dolphin deck (I'm presuming you are looking at a Grand class ship) and the balconies do not have any overhead protection and so you are open to the elements and those lookng down on you. We had one in January and loved it however booked a mid-ship, Caribe Deck balcony for our trip in March '09 which is a standard room with a balcony that is part open air and part covered.

 

Hope that helps.

[blindrid]

Hi, my husband and I are looking to book our first cruise sometime in fall/early winter of 2008 and leaning towards Princess. It sounds like the best fit for us. Before deciding on this, I had planned on looking for the best deal out there and booking that...but I see all Cruise lines are not created equally for all! I still have a few questions....

1. My sister and her husband cruised Princess and my understanding is they would be enrolled in their frequent cruiser program after their first cruise. On their website it says that if they refer us, we get a discount...anyone know how much that usually is? Do I get that discount just booking through Princess, or do you get that through a TA?

 

Each line enrolls you in their "frequent flier" program after the first cruise. They do get a referral fee - "Refer your friends and relatives to Princess and for each new customer you refer both you and your referral can receive a $25 discount off of a future Princess Cruise."

Needless to say, I never get real fired up on a lot of this stuff.

 

2. In the brochure, it mentions early booking discount and quotes rates, but does not really seem to specify what qualifies as "early booking"...any ideas on this? It seems then the brochure would have different rates than what I am getting online from them?

 

There really isn't an "early booking discount". The prices may be cheaper the earlier you book, but not necessarily. Online TA's, in my experience, are cheaper than cuise lines Vacation Planners.

 

3. Someone give me the lowdown of what decks/areas to avoid when it comes to balcony rooms? I remember seeing a few things about noise issues,lack of privacy on balconies, and areas best to be in if you may get sea sick...

 

Each ship is different. A lot of people think that mid ship and lower is less rough. That may be true but we haven't had a bad ride anywhere on the ship. If it's rough, it's pretty much rough all over. There is no such thing as total privacy on a balacony but some are more private than others, again research the ship.

 

4. We are looking at Western Caribbean...it looks like temps that time of year are in the 70's....is that warm enough if you plan to swim, sunbathe...??

 

We've done cruises in December and have found the weather almost ideal, water temps warm. It's been in the 80's when we've gone. Whatever it is, the weather is better than I'll have at home. You'll be fine.

 

Any other suggestions and tips are appreciated : ) Thanks!

 

Research the ship as much as anything. I am a firm believe that the ship makes a larger difference than the line does.

[can786]

As far as noise in the cabin goes, it is best to book a cabin on a deck that is between two other decks with cabins, rather than being above or below a public space. Also, if you have inside cabins across the hall from you it will be quieter than if you have a steward station or other crew service area across the hall from you. If you see a blank space in the center part of the ship on the deck plans it has the potential to be a crew service area. I have had cabins near laundry rooms and stairs/elevators and have never had a problem with the noise from those.

 

Midship and lower decks are best if you are sensitive to motion but as a previous poster said, if it is rough you will feel it no matter where you are. Besides, most people don't spend 24 hours a day in their cabin.

[LuvTheGoodLife]

following refers to 'side' of ship balconies only, i.e. those on starboard or port sides of any ‘Grand’ class ship (Grand, Golden, Star, Diamond, Sapphire, Caribbean, Crown, Emerald etc) and not any balconies that face directly aft....

 

Baja deck balconies are sized 9 ft. wide x 5 ft. deep and have full ceiling overhang. Lido, Aloha, Riviera (found on Caribbean, Crown, Emerald, Ruby only) decks have the same balconies. You can stand at the railing of these balconies and look down on to part of the Caribe deck balconies and all of the Dolphin deck balconies.

 

Caribe deck balconies are sized 9 ft. wide x 9 ft. deep and have ceiling overhang over the first 5 ft. Standing at the railing, you will overlook Dolphin deck balconies below.

 

All of the cabin interiors/bathrooms of the balcony cabins are the same with respect to size (unless it is a handicapped cabin).

Dolphin deck balconies (all balcony cabins are actually mini-suites and thus bigger than regular balcony cabins on the interior with sitting area, 2nd TV and bathtub/shower combination instead of the small shower stall found in the regular balcony cabins). The balcony is sized 9 ft. wide x 7 ft. deep and has no ceiling overhang as protection from sun or rain.

 

Emerald deck has several mini-suites each side with fully covered balconies. The last mini-suite cabin towards aft end on each side has extra wide balcony – approximately 7 ft. deep x 18 wide, according to someone who stayed in one of these. Emerald deck also has some regular balcony cabins near the front that have the balconies set back under the roof and back from the railing. You look straight out to the water but cannot look down on the water. The walking track goes past these balconies and walkers can see you on your balcony. I do not have any measurements for these Emerald deck balcony sizes.

Hope this helps. Enjoy your cruise!

[daughterofsarah77]

Thanks for the advice...of course I have another question:) I see reference to some mini-suites here...are those just categorized under balcony? and cost more I presume than just the typical balcony room?

 

I will have to look at the itineraries I am interested in and see which ships those were...

[magnumcoog]

Checkout this website, http://www.*************.com well poop, Cruise Compete was blocked out.

 

You will get quotes from agencies, you can also check out the ratings from customers that have used that agency.

 

If you send me an email, listed below, I will give you the website of my favorite online agency.

 

Terry

[LuvTheGoodLife]

Category BA/BB/BC etc. mean regular balcony cabins. Categories vary by deck/whether forward/middle/aft etc. Regular balcony cabins in the above categories are found on Lido, Aloha, Riviera, Baja, Caribe or very far forward on Emerald.

 

Category AB/AC/AD mean mini-suite cabins (all have balconies). These type of cabins are located on Dolphin deck or Emerald deck only.

[kman48]

D'S77,

 

Come check out the Roll Call for the above, looks like at least 10-12 fun people,out of 6,000 or whatever (kidding). I have seen complaints from some people on CC about service, sometimes about food, on a new ship's first few sailings--inexperienced service people, no "rhythm" among the staff...but I also have read that Princess is moving some particularly good dining room people to the Ruby.

 

Kman

[tequilasunrise]

Hi, my husband and I are looking to book our first cruise sometime in fall/early winter of 2008 and leaning towards Princess. It sounds like the best fit for us. Before deciding on this, I had planned on looking for the best deal out there and booking that...but I see all Cruise lines are not created equally for all! I still have a few questions....

1. My sister and her husband cruised Princess and my understanding is they would be enrolled in their frequent cruiser program after their first cruise. On their website it says that if they refer us, we get a discount...anyone know how much that usually is? Do I get that discount just booking through Princess, or do you get that through a TA?

 

2. In the brochure, it mentions early booking discount and quotes rates, but does not really seem to specify what qualifies as "early booking"...any ideas on this? It seems then the brochure would have different rates than what I am getting online from them?

 

3. Someone give me the lowdown of what decks/areas to avoid when it comes to balcony rooms? I remember seeing a few things about noise issues,lack of privacy on balconies, and areas best to be in if you may get sea sick...

 

4. We are looking at Western Caribbean...it looks like temps that time of year are in the 70's....is that warm enough if you plan to swim, sunbathe...??

 

Any other suggestions and tips are appreciated : ) Thanks!

 

2. Prices often come down after booking--don't count on it, but it might happen. Early booking discount doesn't mean too much in my experience.

 

3. Mid ship cabins are best for seasickness but if it helps, you have picked one of the mildest area of water. There's never a guarantee, but Western Caribbean is a very good bet for smooth sailing and thus a great choice for newbies. Other things to avoid---being under or over a disco or showroom if you are an early to bed person and under a pool if you sleep in. If noise doesn't bother you, book anywhere. My experience with elevators and stairs is that they aren't too bad except on spring break. Cabins way in the front might rock more, on some ships those way in the back vibrate a little on lower floors.

 

But seriously, don't get too hung up on your cabin; unless you like to relax in private a lot. Most people don't spend much time in them. If you do plan to spend time in it; keep those factors in mind. Also, if you are a non-smoker and plan to spend a lot of time on your private balcony, book as far forward as your stomach can stand (so the wind blows the smoke back). On Princess, you always take a risk when you book a balcony that someone else's smoke, carelessly thrown cig butts, etc can render it unusable. Princess policy allows smoking on ALL balconies. I book only insides after a nasty experience with that.

 

4. It will be warm!

 

Have a great cruise!

[Julia’s Journey’s]

Also, if you are a non-smoker and plan to spend a lot of time on your private balcony, book as far forward as your stomach can stand (so the wind blows the smoke back). On Princess, you always take a risk when you book a balcony that someone else's smoke, carelessly thrown cig butts, etc can render it unusable. Princess policy allows smoking on ALL balconies. I book only insides after a nasty experience with that.

 

4. It will be warm!

 

Have a great cruise!

 

Great advise, we spent 30 days in a balcony cabin and couldn't enjoy the balcony, we could barely breath in our room with the door closed in the morning and even our room stewart couldn't believe how bad it was:D

Learnt an expensive lesson so it's oceanviews or insides for us on Princess from now on. (We never had any problems with our balconies on DCL)

[cjh]

If you are talking about fall of this year as in 4 months from now you might find that you have a hard time getting what you want and that the ship is already booked.

[tvaud]

When booking a mini make sure you are getting a mini with balcony, as there are a few outside minis on some of the ships. This is a mini with a window only, no balcony. They are usually all the way forward. These minis are also larger...taking that extra balcony space for interior space.

[Knuklehead]

Great advise, we spent 30 days in a balcony cabin and couldn't enjoy the balcony, we could barely breath in our room with the door closed in the morning and even our room stewart couldn't believe how bad it was:D

Learnt an expensive lesson so it's oceanviews or insides for us on Princess from now on. (We never had any problems with our balconies on DCL)

 

Thanks for that .It never occurred to me but I'm sure that somebody who just has to SMOKE SMOKE SMOKE :eek: :eek: :eek: would have to book a balcony . We always go on the cheap with an inside . The things you learn on this board .Good to keep in mind .

[tequilasunrise]

Great advise, we spent 30 days in a balcony cabin and couldn't enjoy the balcony, we could barely breath in our room with the door closed in the morning and even our room stewart couldn't believe how bad it was:D

Learnt an expensive lesson so it's oceanviews or insides for us on Princess from now on. (We never had any problems with our balconies on DCL)

 

Sorry to hear it, on a 30 day'er that would REALLY suck. :(

 

The good news is, I've saved a bunch of money booking insides! And every time I cruise I write on my comment card advocating for a block of non-smoking rooms including those with balconies! Someday we'll get a few, I'm betting.