Lessons Learned - Cabin Selection
- aswimmer2
- Apr 25, 2023
- 4 min read
If you remember the movie Titanic ((Andy, are you seriously mentioning the Titanic in your cruise blog???????) .............. (Yes)),......... you'll hopefully remember the scenes of both types of staterooms they showed. Jack was in economy class, lower floors, stark hallways, no portholes, dark and bare furnishings. And then there was Rose's stateroom in first class, plush and elegant, bright and comfortable.
I'm pleased to report that the difference between economy class and first class isn't quite as dramatic anymore. It's more like the difference on a plane, business class has a little more room and a little better service, but they start and end up at the same place. However, on a plane, you spend 99% of your time in your seat. On a cruise, you spend less than 5% of your awake time in your cabin.
So what should really matter when selecting a stateroom? Should size matter? (This suddenly got uncomfortable). No, size shouldn't matter if it's just the two of you or you're solo (really, really uncomfortable ;-) ). Unless you're going to pay way north off $100k to get a suite, it's one room and a bath. Remember, your kitchen is up on deck 14, your living room is on deck 5, 6 and 7. Your diningroom is on deck 5 or 6. Generally speaking, you aren't entertaining in your cabin. If you are, you're probably on the wrong travel blog site. And while it is your "home" for 4 months, its really just 1 room of your home, the bedroom with an ensuite bath.
So to be clear, I'm not saying don't get the minisuite. Our friends Scott and Anita had a minisuite and loved it. I'm simply recommending that your type of room be a lower priority than another important factor, location.
Before you read on, I suggest taking a look at another bloggers review of the island princess. She includes pics and detailed info on Sq ft of both rooms and balconies. But there are ads. I don't get a referral fee, I just think it's well done.
In my opinion, the most important factor/priority for a cabin is the same as for real estate in general. Location, location, location. And in the location discussion, 3 aspects dominate the conversation:
Convenience to the parts of the ship you use most
Sway/movement
What's adjacent or nearby.
Convenience may not be that important on a short cruise, but it is on a long voyage. Though you don't spend much time in your cabin, you go there often: after breakfast, before and after your workout, before and after going in the pool/hot tub, before dinner and before bedtime.....at a minimum. On average, I'd say we went to our stateroom no less than 10x per sea day. We opted for as close to center as possible. That's considered an upgrade. Most of the public entertaining spaces are in the mid to front on the ship including all diningrooms, theater and most bars. In the back are the fitness center, the spa and guest laundry. If you don't work out daily, you'll want to gravitate toward the mid to front of the ship. There's also the up/down factor. If you use the stairs, deck 9 is dead center between 5 and 14. (There's no 13). We were on 11. If I had it to do over again, I'd pick a cabin on 9.
Sway and movement can be a factor for some. If you're bothered by the rock and roll of the ship, clearly that trumps most other factors in cabin selection. But at the same time, are you sure you want to do a cruise? I found the sway of the ship to be incredibly peaceful at night. What some considered the worst nights, I considered the best. I slept like a rock. But as I'm sure you know, the more central and lower the cabin is, the less sway you'll feel.
What's adjacent is also important. This is a 24hr city that doesn't sleep. When you're asleep, all decks are being cleaned and prepared for the next day. The crew is incredibly busy when you're asleep. So avoid cabins near the staff-related areas because they go in and out A LOT at night. The problem is, they don't label those spaces on the deck plans. So ask your travel agent.
If you opt for a balcony room, opt for the port side. It's a 50/50 shot if the views will be better, but the port side doesn't have cabins across the hall. This ship is Panamax, meaning the longest and widest a ship can be to transit the original Panama canal locks. That means only one row of interior cabins run down the center of the floor and their doors open on the starboard side. So on the port side, it cuts down on the traffic and the steward trollies. You'll thank me for that recommendation. But please note, we "park" on the starboard side in most ports. So there may be more "action" on that side. BUT in Sydney, the port side had a view of the opera house and the fireworks. It was the only time I regretted not having a balcony. But I still got a good view from deck 7
The more you spend on a cabin, the higher the expectations. Our friend Angela had a deluxe balcony room and got flooded out 3x. There were a lot of rooms that had minor to major plumbing issues. But it was devastating to her. They finally upgraded her to a minisuite, but what a hassle. We wouldn't have been happy if we were flooded out but hey, it was only up from here. So it wouldn't have been so bad.
And that's what I learned about cabin selection. I hope you find it helpful.
Next up....Dealing with Princess.
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